I'm imagining this evolving into something like a flying Segway, where the user has a stick to alter the engine pointing rather than shifting their weight, and/or some other failsafe to stop them tilting it too far. From other articles (don't have time to find them right now) I believe the board can still function with three out of four engines, so there's some redundancy (though he did splashdown when the batteries failed). Not sure how you could protect against the user from flying into buildings though.
Source : http://bit.ly/24v7Thk
Franky Zapata of France flies 2,252.4 metres on prototype Flyboard Air, breaking the Guinness World Record by nearly 2km.
Björn Petersen why?
ReplyDeleteBjörn Petersen That was just a film. Both jet packs and this thing will travel over water.
ReplyDeleteJames Graham I believe this is called "flippancy". :)
ReplyDeleteTo have that sort of performance, the batteries must have incredibly dangerous amounts of power contained, and probably can only make the platform fly for a very limited amount of time.
ReplyDeleteAs with rocket packs, this thing operates within the danger zone, above 9 meters altitude any falls will cause serious injury or death. But below 30 meters you cannot use a parachute. This is probably why he is operating over the sea instead of pavement.
Winchell Chung I believe the maximum flight time is estimated at 10 minutes, and yes, the water was chosen for safety reasons.
ReplyDeleteP.S. I believe it's powered by kerosene jet engines rather than electric fans.
ReplyDeleteThe thing which seems unavoidable with such small devices is excessive noise. I am more interested in a vehicle with the horizontal dimensions of a car (to fit in a parking space).
ReplyDeleteMaybe two side-by-side rotors (more efficient than front-back, and doesn't have the problem of digging in the nose when tilting forward).
Rhys Taylor that krosene must have oncreadibly dangerous amounts of power contained. I hope it doesn't catch on fire.
ReplyDeleteChuck Potchen the most powerful engine ever made, the first stage of the Saturn 5 was fueled by kerosene and liquid oxygen. JP or jet propellant is a high grade of kerosene.
ReplyDeleteDavid Andrews I know. Saturn V was awesome! I was being snarky about a previous post in this thread about the dangers of batteries. Which in comparison to the explosive volatility of any liquid fuel seems kind of piddly.
ReplyDeleteChuck Potchen ahh, I'm a bit slow on the uptake... Naive I think it's called. :)
ReplyDeleteIsaac Kuo Did you see this ?
ReplyDeletehttp://www.digitaltrends.com/cool-tech/ehang-184-drone-flying-taxi-ces-2016/
Rhys Taylor I like that one a lot! The lack of safety cages around the props makes me think of it more as a rooftop-to-rooftop thing, and the overall dimensions are...well, square just doesn't fit will with parking lots around here.
ReplyDeleteWith that vehicle's layout, a large gap between the rotors is required for getting in/out by the sides. But I want something with the rotors to the sides, so it fits in a rectangular parking space. That more or less rules out getting in/out by the sides.
I think the most elegant alternative is to get on/off the vehicle from behind. Rather than reclining back onto a seat with a back, you sit over the batteries in the style of a motorcycle or water scooter.
If the cockpit is fully enclosed, though, the rear door might incorporate a seat back, I suppose.
Needs a cape and mask: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hobgoblin_(comics)
ReplyDeleteChuck Potchen Well, I just meant that kerosene engines are a mature technology when it comes to supplying energy.
ReplyDeleteBut all those stories about those laptop computers and chinese-manufactured hoverboards powered by lithium batteries spontaneously bursting into flames does give one pause.