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- Air Vehicles Directorate at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio, is already developing prototypes of tiny drones that can hover
- The Micro Air Vehicles will work in swarms to provide complex surveillance of a battlefield
- They can also be armed with incapacitating chemicals, combustible payloads or even explosives 'for precision targeting capability'
The U.S. Air Force is developing tiny
unmanned drones that will fly in swarms, hover like bees, crawl like
spiders and even sneak up on unsuspecting targets and execute them with
lethal precision.
The
Air Vehicles Directorate, a research arm of the Air Force, has released a
computer-animated video outlining the the future capabilities of Micro
Air Vehicles (MAVs). The project promises to revolutionize war by
down-sizing the combatants.
'MAVs
will become a vital element in the ever-changing war-fighting
environment and will help ensure success on the battlefield of the
future,' the narrator intones.
'Unobtrusive, pervasive, lethal - Micro Air Vehicles, enhancing the capabilities of the future war fighter.'
Scroll down for video
Hovering: Micro Air Vehicles (MAVs) are the
future of the unmanned drones program, according to a new video from the
Air Force. The Air Force has already developed a drone capable of
hovering like a moth
Perching: The video, released by the Air Vehicle
Directorate, shows a pigeon-like drone that can draw power from an
electrical wire while its camera watches a target
Crawling: The drones will be equipped with legs so that they can crawl through tight spaces like an insect
The project, which is based at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio, was revealed in the March issue of the National Geographic magazine.
Air
Force officials said they have already produced tiny remote-control
prototypes - but they consume so much power that can only operate for a
few minutes. Researchers estimate that it will take several years of
advances in battery technology to make the designs feasible.
Still, the Air Force has a clear concept of what it hopes to accomplish with the program.
The promotional video begins with a swarm of tiny drones be dropped on a city from a passing plane.
The
drones will work in concert to patch together a wide, detailed view of
the battlefield - singling out individual targets without losing sight
of the broader scene.
'Data
will be communicated among the MAVs to enable real time, reliable
decision-making and to provide an advanced overall picture for other
platforms or operators,' the Air Force says.
Killing: The video demonstrates how MAVs could
be used to sneak up behind unsuspecting targets and kill them with a
single, lethal shot
Lethal: The drones could be equipped with
incapacitating chemicals, combustible payloads or even explosives 'for
precision targeting capability'
As the drones fall, they begin
to fly - not like planes, but like insects. High frequency flapping
wings allow the drones to hover and maneuver in tight spaces.
The
military has already produced a drone patterned after a hawk moth that
can flap its wings 30 times a second. However, the activity exhausts the
drone's tiny battery in just a few minutes, according to National
Geographic.
Another
drone type soars like a pigeon and perches unobtrusively on a power line
to observe a surveillance target with a camera.
The
Air Force is working on technology that will allow the drones to steal
electricity from power cables and other sources - so they can continue
to operate for days or weeks on end.
Swarming: The drones couple be dropped en masse
over a battlefield or a city and would work together to create a complex
surveillance network
Working together: The drones would use advanced
software to navigate by 'sight,' rather than GPS - which can be blocked
by buildings or by jamming from the enemy
The Air Force training video shows a winged MAV following a target as he drives through the streets of a dense city.
Advanced
sensors will enable 'optic flow,' which will allow remote pilots to fly
by 'sight' - rather than flying by GPS, which can be disrupted by
buildings or deliberately jammed by enemy forces.
The video depicts three drones following the target into a house, where they maneuver hallways and rooms undetected.
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