SAMARAI Monocopter A Lockheed Martin engineer
holds the latest prototype of the SAMARAI monocopter
drone, a unique vertical take off and landing (VTOL)
configuration whose one wing whirls around a central
hub like maple tree spinners Eric Hagerman
holds the latest prototype of the SAMARAI monocopter
drone, a unique vertical take off and landing (VTOL)
configuration whose one wing whirls around a central
hub like maple tree spinners Eric Hagerman
After years of development and military funding setbacks, defense contractor Lockheed Martin is finally ready to debut its maple seed-inspired drone. The one-winged, one-foot-long SAMARAI drone just flew a test flight for the Associated Press ahead of its official unveiling at an unmanned vehicle conference next week.
The asymmetric UAV is modeled after maple seeds, called samara, that fly off trees and twirl through the air with the utmost efficiency. Originally, the SAMARAI was envisioned as a seed-sized drone that could deliver a 2-gram payload and send back streaming video, but that has since changed to a much bigger, whining drone. More
