Flying hoverbike cars have the opportunity to take off in the future

A flying car (hoverbike) like Star War will have the opportunity to step out of the screen into the real world when the company specializing in drone Malloy Aeronautics (UK) has just signed a partnership with SURVICE Engineering. of the United States and the US Department of Defense to develop and manufacture this type of vehicle.

Hoverbike flying cars will be completed in the future

The prototype of the flying car was introduced by Malloy at the Paris Air Show last week and they thought it could do a lot of work that often requires helicopters.

Two prototypes of flying cars, bi-copter versions (on the right) were then rejected by Malloy saying that manufacturing costs were high and uncompetitive.

Most of Malloy 's frame was handcrafted with carbon fiber wrapped around a sponge core. Designing each pair of robotic overlaps helps reduce the weight and width of the vehicle. Around the robots there are circular cages that minimize collision with the rotor. Hoverbike is equipped with electric motors that use Li-ion batteries and engine power to help it lift the weight of about 100 kg to zero. Thus, the car can carry an adult but it is unclear how the pilot will control. Besides carrying people, the car can also transport many kinds of small goods.

1/3 ratio flying car version is currently on sale on Kickstarter.

Malloy initially built a model of a car that was one-third the size of its true size in Hampshire, England. Then the group decided to commercialize this small model on Kickstarter to raise funds to develop the main version. Finally, the complete hoverbike flying car version has been released to the oven with many features such as the ability to stabilize advanced state and ability to fly maneuver. The flying car can operate automatically according to the available roadmap, flying back to the starting point, hovering and following the driver.

Video about Hoverbike version 1/3 ratio on Kickstarter.

Talking about the advantages of hoverbike compared to traditional helicopters, Malloy said that the first advantage is that it is more secure by the adducted rotor design (temporarily called a closed-wing rotor) to help protect the driver in In case of accidentally letting hands or feet touch the rotor. In addition, people and surrounding objects are protected in case the vehicle collides with the vehicle that will automatically avoid collisions. The second advantage is the cost, of course compared to helicopters, hoverbike is cheaper and has lower operating costs.

According to Malloy's expectation, the flying car will replace the role of the helicopter in many types of tasks. For example, hoverbike's small size and low price allow it to perform search and rescue tasks, support emergency services, respond quickly, and bring goods into tight spaces. In addition, Mark Butkiewicz from SURVICE explains why the US Department of Defense pays attention to flying car technology because it can support many roles such as transporting troops and supplies through complex terrain. complex, carry out logistics and because it can operate in both manned and unmanned modes, the vehicle can be used as a means of reconnaissance .

It is still not clear when the aircraft will be deployed in the US military only for the next step, both companies will jointly develop prototypes that meet military standards. It is worth noting that the US Department of Defense has a history of developing many types of helicopters and vehicles to replace helicopters since the 1950s but has not achieved much success. With the advent of quadcopter technology and Li-ion batteries becoming lighter, hopefully this type of vehicle will have the opportunity to " take off" .