Imagine the marine on a reconnaissance
mission who
must know now just what's over the hill in front
of him.
Imagine a 4 pound glider that fits in a backpack, has
the radar
signature of a bird, comes packed with a video eye,
can be
assembled and launched in less than 5 minutes, and comes
complete with a portable control station. Now visualize that
soldier launching his flyer and then watching his control station
screen come alive - showing him not only the nature and general
size and condition of the enemy in front of him, but their
movements,
their hardware, the general landscape, the cover
provided.
This is
Dragon Eye - a new robotic
airborne sensor system funded by the
Office of Naval Research
that gives the soldier the means of
seeing what he can't see
from standing where he is. And best of
all,Dragon Eye comes back
when called. It's low-priced,
hip-pocket aerial reconnaissance
for the troops - made with
commercial, off-the-shelf materials
- so even if it is captured
by enemy fire or other tactics, it
is easily replaceable. The
Dragon Eye bench model, built and
demonstrated by the Naval
Research Laboratory, is now ready to
be contracted out for
production prototyping. Click here to see
a video
of Dragon Eye being tested, including a view of its imaging
capabilities.
The U.S. Naval Research Laboratory is the Navy's full-spectrum corporate laboratory, conducting a broadly based multidisciplinary program of scientific research and advanced technological development. The Laboratory, with a total complement of nearly 2,500 personnel, is located in southwest Washington, D.C., with other major sites at the Stennis Space Center, Miss., and Monterey, Calif. NRL has served the Navy and the nation for over 85 years and continues to meet the complex technological challenges of today's world. For more information, visit the NRL homepage or join the conversation on Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube.
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