德國發明“好脾氣”載人遙控直升機

It might look like as space hopper surrounded by model helicopters, but the 16-rotor E-Volo is an entirely new kind of helicopter - which can hover motionless in the air without input from the pilot.

Its bold engineer, Thomas Senkel, took the machine on its first manned flight this week - lasting 1 minute 30 seconds.

It's far easier to fly than ordinary helicopters - it's steered by rotor speed, which is computer-controlled, so the pilot just needs to use a joystick as if playing a videogame, rather than controlling multiple complex contorols at once.

The machine has few parts, which could wear out, meaning the aircraft needs little maintenance. Its engineered construction has no complicated mechanics, and redundant engines.

In an emergency, it can land even if four of its 16 rotors fail.

The controls could be integrated with GPS software, and the machine could even automatically avoid obstacles and direct itself to pre-determined locations.

Senkel describes the easy-to-use machine as “good-natured” and potentially capable of replacing the helicopter in many situations.

The three inventors claim their flying machine could be used for inspecting pipelines, as an air ambulance or for taking aerial photographs - as well as just for fun.

The multi-copter is currently only able to fly for around 20 minutes because it runs on lithium-ion batteries.據英國《每日郵報》11月4日報道，這看起來像是由遙控直升飛機環繞着的太空彈跳球，但實際上它是一架配置了16個旋翼、名爲E-Volo的新型直升飛機。該直升機可停在空中盤旋飛行，無需飛行員在機艙內操控。

其設計師——大膽的托馬斯-森科爾於本週乘坐該飛機進行了首次載人試航，時長1分30秒。

這款飛機比普通直升飛機飛起來要容易的多。它由電腦控制的旋翼引導飛行，所以駕駛員只需像玩電子遊戲一樣使用操縱桿即可，而無需同時控制多個複雜的操縱板。

該機器配件很少，可以拆卸，這意味着它需要很少的養護。而且它沒有複雜的機器配置和多餘的發動機。

在緊急情況下，即使16個旋翼中有4個出現問題飛機也能降落。

飛機的控制系統可以裝入GPS軟件，能使其自動避開障礙物，自我導航至目標位置。

森科爾形容這架好用的機器爲“好脾氣的”直升飛機，並很可能在許多情況下代替普通直升飛機使用。

這三位發明者稱他們的飛行器能夠用於管道檢查，空中救護或拍攝航空照片，或僅供娛樂。

因爲使用鋰離子電池，該多用途直升機目前僅能飛行20分鐘左右。