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AUGUST 25, 2004
By Olga Kharif A Flying Leap for Cars [Page 2 of 2] GOOD AS A HORSE. Here's how the device, which Falk says "is like a flying motorcycle," works: A person is strapped to what looks like a sturdy metal tower with a rotor on top. The pilot's left hand controls the accelerator, while his right hand twists a joystick to make turns. The machine, called Springtail, can hit speeds up to 90 miles an hour, and its 10-gallon tank of diesel fuel is good for 2.25 hours of flight. First, Springtail will be used by soldiers during battles within cities. Eventually, it will make its way into the civilian world, too, he predicts.
Eventually, piloting could be nearly automatic. Thanks to special intelligent software, four-foot-long robot helicopters developed by Carnegie Mellon can already fly along a designated route and spot a specific object, such as a small electronic label. At some point, their on-board sensors and analytical software should be able to discern obstacles like wires and birds, and differentiate between, say, trees and people, says Takeo Kanade, professor at Carnegie Mellon in Pittsburgh. Then, human pilots might only need to turn the steering wheel or press the brakes, while their flying cars guide themselves. THE GAMES NEURONS PLAY. Eventually, passengers might even be able to read the paper or eat breakfast while their flying car's brain does all the work. University of Florida researchers are hoping to use a bunch of living neurons -- located in a sealed dish on the ground -- to pilot a toy plane through the air. The neurons, which are nerve cells found in the brain and the spinal cord, are connected to silicon chips that would communicate with the plane wirelessly. In today's experiments, however, they keep in touch through a long cable. Sensors on the plane collect information about its surroundings and pass their findings -- such as images of a fast-approaching building -- to the neurons, which then tell the plane to swerve away. How do the neurons know what to do? Easy: They're trained through computer games. The brain cells get a pinch of an electric impulse whenever the virtual plane in the game bumps into obstacles, explains William Ditto, chairman of department of biomedical engineering at the University of Florida in Gainsville. REGULATORY DOGFIGHT. Even if planes of the future do collide, they might be able to handle it a lot better than now. The U.S. Air Force Research Lab is developing special ways to effectively weave large parts of a plane out of supertough carbon fiber, reducing the number of gaps in the body and making its stronger. Weaving -- rather than assembling many small parts -- dramatically reduces costs. The Air Force is also developing so-called self-healing polymers, which can fill up gashes on a plane's body, says Doug Bowers, associate director for air platforms at the Air Force. Of course, getting to commercial use will take years. Plus, regulatory battles -- revolving around complex topics like air-traffic control -- still remain to be fought. The first round will begin as air taxis make mass appearance. "If air taxis really work, the regulatory environment would modernize," says Richard Aboulafia, an analyst with aerospace and defense consultancy Teal Group in Fairfax, Va. That would make the going easier for later-generation, personal devices. Sure, the flying car is a long way off. But chances are, cars will eventually fly. Pigs won't.
 Kharif is a reporter for BusinessWeek Online in Portland, Ore.
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