American military engineers are developing a new generation of aerial micro-drones, shrinking the unmanned aircraft to the size of insects and birds, reported the Daily Telegraph.
And ‘Nano Hummingbird’, developed by a US company called AeroVironment, is one of them, which could be used for reconnaissance and surveillance. The Daily Telegraph says the bird-sized drone can fly inside and outside and has a top speed of 11 miles per hour, even in windy conditions. Like conventional larger drones, the pilot can fly the microdrone remotely using the onboard camera. The latest microdrones are being designed to mimic the way a real bird or insect flies, making them less conspicuous in hostile environments.
By 2030, the US military says it envisions swarms of ‘spy flies’ equipped with sensors and microcameras to detect enemies, nuclear weapons or victims buried in rubble. The newspaper says Developers at the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio have produced dozens of prototypes based on the flight mechanics of birds, moths and dragonflies. A doctoral student at the base’s advanced navigation technology centre Major Michael Anderson, who is developing wings based on those of the hawk moth, said, “It’s impressive what they can do compared to what our clumsy aircraft can do.”
The newspaper says the next generation drones will be autonomous, flying themselves and programmed to search out targets, nuclear weapons or even spot survivors of natural disasters.
