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Pentagon Seeks Laser-Powered Bat Drones (defenseone.com)
Zorro quotes DefenseOne:
A new contest seeks flight systems inspired by Mother Nature and powered by directed-energy beams. Tired: multi-rotor copters and fixed-wing drones. Wired: flying robots that move like living animals, are crafted of next-generation materials, and draw their power not from batteries but energy beamed from nearby aircraft...
"The biological study of agile organisms such as bats and flying insects has yielded new insights into complex flight kinematics of systems with a large number of degrees of freedom, and the use of multi-functional flight surface materials," the announcement reads. The Air Force believes that more and more naturalistic design -- coupled with more powerful and smaller sensors to form a better picture of the outside world -- should yield "significant improvements in maneuverability, survivability and stealth over traditional quadcopter or fixed wing designs."
The article includes a link to a CalTech video showing footage of an advanced robotic bat.
"The biological study of agile organisms such as bats and flying insects has yielded new insights into complex flight kinematics of systems with a large number of degrees of freedom, and the use of multi-functional flight surface materials," the announcement reads. The Air Force believes that more and more naturalistic design -- coupled with more powerful and smaller sensors to form a better picture of the outside world -- should yield "significant improvements in maneuverability, survivability and stealth over traditional quadcopter or fixed wing designs."
The article includes a link to a CalTech video showing footage of an advanced robotic bat.
Where do they get those wonderful toys?
Just for the record, I'm against arming wildlife. If you think mosquitoes are a problem now, just imagine when they get RPGs.
However, I think it should be pointed out that bats navigate by sonar and thus probably will not be greatly bothered by smoke or rain. Country and Western music played at high volume may be needed to defend against them.
You can't see ANYTHING from a car, You've got to get out of the goddamned contraption and walk...Edward Abbey