China’s leading drone manufacturer has presented a new invention that is very difficult for the enemy to detect.
A team from a Chinese university revealed a new model of drone which resembles a falcon. In the sky, the new device from the Northwestern Polytechnic University – the main manufacturer of drones from China – it is impossible to distinguish it from the bird from which it was inspired.
Northwestern Polytechnic University/China Central Television
According to the North American magazine Newsweek, it is described by the Chinese press as the drone “more agile and flexible”, and can be applied in military reconnaissance, ecological monitoring and environmental protection actions, details the Chinese state channel CCTV.
The newspaper Global Times goes further, considering that this drone it can be used for “reconnaissance, surveillance and even precision bombing missions in special operations.”
The ornithopter (name given to an aircraft that seeks to copy the movements of birds) was presented in Xi’an, Shaanxi province, on March 2. It was named Xiaosun, which means “little hawk”.
The flight of the “little falcon” is possible due to a crank mechanism that allows the wings to fold while flapping them. It can also fold one wing at a time and extend both, which increases its energy efficiency, according to CCTV.
Its similarity to a bird makes identification efforts difficult. drone by the enemy.
Northwestern Polytechnic University is one of China’s leading defense institutions and a leading supplier of drones Chinese, being strongly committed to military research. “It is the only Chinese university that houses an unmanned aerial vehicle defense laboratory,” says the Australian Strategic Policy Institute. “The university has close ties with state-owned shipbuilding and aerospace conglomerates.”
The introduction of the Little Falcon marks a significant milestone in the evolution of computer technology. drones. The team that developed this drone also created another that resembles a dove that, in October 2023, flew non-stop for three hours, five minutes and 30 seconds.
The European Union is also investing in ornithopters, having financed the Griffin project in 2023. It consisted of developing a robotic bird that can land on tree branches. In 2020, a study published in the journal Science Robotics presented an X-wing ornithopter with wings weighing just 26 grams that could be used in micro aerial vehicle missions.
Related articles
