[Faline]

Its Japanese developers call it the 'Futuristic Circular Flying Object' and it's designed to go where humans can't.
The radio-controlled sphere, roughly the size of a basketball, was built for search and rescue operations, specifically to fly in and out of buildings weakened by earthquakes or other natural disasters.
The device uses its onboard camera to transmit live images of whatever it sees.

The black, open-work ball looks like a futuristic work of art, but it can hover for up to eight minutes and fly at 37mph -- although it does slow down for open windows.

Fumiyuki Sato, at the Japanese Defense Ministry's Technical Research and Development Institute, invented and built the vehicle for roughly 110,000 yen (£865 / $1,390) with parts purchased off the shelf at consumer electronics stores.
He said: 'Because of its spherical shape, it can land in various positions and tumble to move around the ground.'
It zips through the air, glides smoothly around corners, and negotiates staircases with ease, all the while emitting a soft hum.

Measuring 42cm, it boasts eight manoeuvrable rudders, 16 spoilers and three gyro sensors to keep it upright. It is made of lightweight carbon fiber and styrene components for a total weight of 340grams.
If its lithium batteries lose power, it's been designed simply to roll to a stop to minimise the chance of damage.
'When fully developed, it can be used at disaster sites, or anti-terrorism operations or urban warfare,' Mr Sato said.
Meanwhile, he added, there's the pure fun of testing it.



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[candymosh]

if he had a light saber...he'd be in business

[Viking64]

I am a peeping tom and I wholeheartedly endorse this invention.

[Sharon]

Originally Posted by Viking64 ↗

I am a peeping tom and I wholeheartedly endorse this invention.

[Sharon]

What a great invention! Imagine the amazing images it will catch

[Faline]

Originally Posted by Viking64 ↗

I am a peeping tom and I wholeheartedly endorse this invention.

Tut-tut

[NaTaS]

Next step is to add the tentacles right? Don't they have a law in japan that everything has to have tentacles?

[Illusion]

The world got a first glimpse of the “world’s first spherical flying machine” back in June this year, but its maker, Japan’s Ministry of Defense, decided it’s time to showcase it publicly a few days ago in Tokyo. And as you can see in the video embedded below, their ball drone is pretty awesome.

The drone can stand still in mid-air, fly vertically and horizontally through narrow spaces at up to 60km/h, and (which is very cool) keep on moving when it hits the ground or a wall. Thanks to three gyro sensors in its body, the machine can keep also flying even if it’s hit by an obstacle.




What’s also impressive is that the drone is made of spare parts that cost just US$1,400 in total.

Here’s the video (in English, shot by DigInfo TV in Tokyo):

<iframe width="853" height="480" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/pF0uLnMoQZA" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

[JONESJIM]

WOW .....the future is here....where is the terminator/sky net...amazing....

[LadyPox]

The early ancestor of the Death Star!