You have probably heard of the term UAV, it is an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle. It is a plane that flies by its self. Think of it as a Remote Control "RC" model airplane only it can be full size. The military has operated "Drones" or aircraft without pilots of almost four decades and many an aircraft has been used in this way as target practice for missile practice.
Today UAVs have so many different shapes and sizes. Some are for combat and some for surveillance. They are not just used in the military either. They can be used to scout fires, track drug traffickers or even survey the New Orleans area after Hurricane Katrina. The commercial uses are endless and there are endless types of unmanned vehicles today.
There are Unmanned Ground Vehicles UGVs like the ones in the DARPA Grand Challenge when they drove vehicles through the desert with no people in them autonomously, without remote control, fully autonomous. Vehicles like this might prevent soldiers dying from roadside bombs or patrol the US Borders, Power Plants or Military installations.
Then there are also AUV or Autonomous Underwater Vehicles, like submarines with no people. Some look like mini submersibles, some like small submarines and even some look like fish or sharks? Pretty cool, you will certainly wish to search this and learn all you can about AUVs.
Next up is MAV or Micro-Air Vehicles some are very small with wing spans the width of a mere piece of paper and some of these researchers are out to out do Moore's Law making mini insects that fly and they will be able to fly through debris for earthquake survivors, thru tree branches, windows and maybe even rotating fans. Can you believe it?
This new technologically advanced age of robotics will growing in the future and you owe it to yourself to learn all you can about these rapid advances. Think about it.
Lance Winslow - Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; www.WorldThinkTank.net/wttbbs/ |
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