Stars Wars Hover Bike Now Reality

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Aerofex hover-bike more than a flight of fancy

From: News Limited Network
August 21, 2012 7:54AM



Hover bike more than a flight of fancy

The hover bike has been re-designed and could be coming to a street near you


IT may not be the speeder bike from Star Wars. But this hover-bike will get your pulse racing.

No, it's not some top-secret US Area 51 project in conjunction with Darth Vader.

No, that's not a storm trooper racing 4m above the Mojave Desert in pursuit of dastardly rebels.

But it is exciting.

Speeder bike

The speeder bike as seen in Star Wars: The Return of the Jedi.

A California-based engineering firm has created a proof-of-concept hover-bike that is as finely tuned to the balance and movements of its rider as its traditional two-wheeled cousins.
Hover-bike

Two ducted fans take the place of wheels. And the styling has nothing on the superbikes on our roads.

But this nimble craft puts true meaning to the phrase of "all-terrain vehicle".

It has already had manned flights of up to 15ft at 50km/h, weaving through trees, buildings and under bridges. And these Mojave Desert test flights have been dominated by caution - not exploring the true limits of its capabilities.

The hover-bike concept is not new.


It was tested - and abandoned - in the 1960s.
Hover-bike

The proof-of-concept manned hover-bike undergoing tests in California's Mojave Desert. Picture: Aerofex

The apparently insurmountable problem was stability and control.

The craft would rollover and crash all too frequently.

But new, intuitive controls promise to make the craft so easy to fly that anybody can take the seat without pilot training.

The trick as applied by Aerofex is to mimic the movements and balance of riding a motorcycle or pushbike.

Two control bars have been put at knee level. As the rider leans one way or the other, the hover-bike responds - producing a natural sense of balance feedback.
Hover-bike

The proof-of-concept manned hover-bike undergoing tests in California's Mojave Desert. Picture: Aerofex

"Since balancing movements are instinctive and constant, it plays out quite effortlessly," Mark De Roche, an aerospace engineer and founder of Aerofex, told InnovationNewsDaily.

A second, more advanced, test craft is due to be ready to fly in October.

But don't expect to be able to dodge toll roads, traffic snarls and then park on the office roof any time soon.

The company sees the craft as a test bed for future unmanned drones.

Aerofex sees them being used for battlefield medical evacuation, search and rescue and general work-horse roles.

The unmanned drone version is due to be ready by the end of next year.
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