The People's Republic of China has reported been deploying a new type of surveillance drone that can so closely imitate real birds that it fools them when they meet.
The South China Morning Post reported Sunday on the “Dove” spy bird program, noting that sources told the Hong Kong-based publication that over 30 military and government agencies had used the flying machines.
These drones don't use propellers to fly — they actually imitate the flapping movements of real birds in order to gain rise and descend and cruise through the clouds. The birds are propelled by a pair of crank-rockers driven by an electric motor. The wings can deform slightly when moving up and down, which together generates not only lift but also thrust to drive the drone forward. Software helps the drone avoid jerky movements, ensuring a smooth, realistic flight that also gives better quality camera footage.
The drones replicate about 90 per cent of the movements of a real dove, an unnamed government source close to the program told SMCP, noting that the drone was extremely quiet and could not be heard from the ground.
Each drone has a high-definition camera, GPS antenna, flight control system and satellite data link.
The Dove program is part of a new initiative to try and replicate the engineering feats of Mother Nature both in order to maximize efficiency and also to avoid detection. These drones can reportedly evade…
