Yeah, US did that, half a century ago:<br><a href="http://whiteeagleaerospace.wordpress.com/2010/11/01/convair-xfy-1-pogo-milestone/">http://whiteeagleaerospace.wordpress.com/2010/11/01/convair-xfy-1-pogo-milestone/</a><br>
<br>This is my favorite, though:<br><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VZ-3_Vertiplane">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VZ-3_Vertiplane</a><br><br><div class="gmail_quote">On Mon, Dec 5, 2011 at 3:23 PM, Jake <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:jake@spaz.org">jake@spaz.org</a>></span> wrote:<br>
<blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex;">This thing is fucking beautiful. �One prop, facing up, with control<br>
surfaces under it to maintain attitude. �And when it's traveling sideways<br>
through space (and it's tilted) the air is directed through "wings" in the<br>
structure to keep it aloft. �It can travel at 66 KPH. �And it's apparently<br>
at least as stable as the best quadrocopters. �And not dangerous (you<br>
would have to stick your hand inside it to get chopped up)<br>
<br>
I say we build one RIGHT NOW. �Cory, where's that electric prop motor you<br>
have? �Do you still have the ESC and other parts? �bring it on!<br>
<br>
<a href="http://www.pcworld.com/article/242938/spherical_flying_drone_looks_like_something_from_scifi_movies.html" target="_blank">http://www.pcworld.com/article/242938/spherical_flying_drone_looks_like_something_from_scifi_movies.html</a><br>
<br>
Airborne Drones are all the craze this year, and Japan is getting in the<br>
game too. Japans Ministry of Defense showed off a flying demo of their<br>
spherically-shaped drone at the recent Digital Content Expo in Tokyo.<br>
<br>
A video from DigInfo shows this little drone taking off vertically, nimbly<br>
zipping around the room, and correcting itself when struck. A propeller<br>
blade powers the drone but it is also equipped with wings that allow it to<br>
fly at speeds of 40 miles per hour. The kicker is the drone only costs<br>
$1,400 to build using off-the-shelf parts.<br>
<br>
The quick maneuverability shown on the video is comparable to the Parrot's<br>
AR.Drone, but thanks to its spherical shape and three on-board gyroscopes,<br>
this drone wont flip over and fall to the ground when it hits a wall.<br>
Japans drone can actually fly along a wall, or even land on the ground and<br>
roll to its destination.<br>
<br>
This drone could be used for anything from security, military,<br>
photojournalism, or to replace camera cranes used on movie sets. At the<br>
same, time sci-fi buffs like me might think it looks a lot light those<br>
flying death bots from Doctor Who or those round syringe-wielding things<br>
hovering around the Death Stars detention level.<br>
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</blockquote></div><br><br clear="all"><br>-- <br>Everything should be made as simple as possible, but no simpler - <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_Einstein" title="Albert Einstein" target="_blank">Albert Einstein</a><br>
Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication - <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonardo_Da_Vinci" title="Leonardo Da Vinci" target="_blank">Leonardo Da Vinci</a><br>
Perfection is reached not when there is nothing left to add, but when there is nothing left to take away - <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antoine_de_Saint_Exup%C3%A9ry" title="Antoine de Saint Exup�ry" target="_blank">Antoine de Saint Exup�ry</a><br>
Keep It Simple Stupid - <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clarence_Johnson" title="Clarence Johnson" target="_blank">Kelly Johnson</a><br>