Comment by Jack Crossfire on June 25, 2012 at 2:33pm

Too bad the heroine pilot had to go to make that time.  Their biggest problem is finding enough space to fly in.  They have to set up & test during the periods when the gym isn't in use.  They can't do spontaneous experiments, but have to plan ahead.

Comment by estebanflyer on June 25, 2012 at 4:40pm

I really like to see how slow the RPM's are! It's impressive. It makes me want to give it a ride.. I wonder if those blades art filled up with some lighter-than-air gas. I also wonder what kind of control do you get from the machine.

Comment by Jan Detlefsen on June 25, 2012 at 8:07pm

this is an awesome achievement, congrats to the team. THis must be one of the coolest thing you could possibly build as a student. 

In terms of control, right now they seem to rely 100% on the ground effect, which means the machine keeps itself stable as the blades get more inefficient with higher distance to the ground. So i would guess there is zero manual control now.

Comment by Ellison Chan on June 25, 2012 at 8:49pm

They should add a small motor to it.  I wonder how long they can make it hover under power.

Comment by Helldesk on June 27, 2012 at 1:25pm

The goal is to win the Sikorsky Prize. The requirements are hard. A 60 second human powered flight at a 3 meter altitude while staying within a 10 meter square! These light-weight quadrotors hover at amazingly low power levels, but there's still a long way to go. I wonder what would be possible if carbon nanotubes were cost-effective to produce and available in long strands...

http://www.vtol.org/awards-and-contests/human-powered-helicopter/hp...

Comment