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Clawed drone grabs prey on the fly just like an eagle
New Scientist ^ | 3/14/13 | Paul Marks

Posted on 03/15/2013 10:56:17 AM PDT by LibWhacker

Video: Watch an eagle-like drone grab objects mid-flight

AS IF being eyes in the sky weren't enough, drones are now getting arms and legs, too. With their newfound limbs they are learning to grab objects in mid-flight or even change a light bulb.

Inspired by the way a bald eagle swoops down to seize a fish from the water with its claws, Justin Thomas and colleagues at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia have developed a fast-acting, talon-like gripper for a small unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV).

When the team studied the eagle's behaviour, they noticed that the bird employed a useful trick to buy more time to grab its prey. The eagle would sweep its legs and claws backwards as its talons closed on a fish, so there was no need to slow down.

The team have mimicked the eagle's strategy by attaching a 3D-printed, three-fingered claw to a 10-centimetre-long motorised leg. With the appendage fixed below its centre of mass, the drone can snatch a stationary object as it flies by.

(Excerpt) Read more at newscientist.com ...


TOPICS: News/Current Events; War on Terror
KEYWORDS: 3dprinting; claws; drones; eagle
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1 posted on 03/15/2013 10:56:17 AM PDT by LibWhacker
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To: null and void

Hey, nully... Not a 3D printing story, per se, but this contraption’s claw was made with a 3D printer.


2 posted on 03/15/2013 10:57:20 AM PDT by LibWhacker
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To: LibWhacker

How I Learned to Love the Drone.


3 posted on 03/15/2013 10:57:50 AM PDT by dfwgator
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To: dfwgator

Lol, I hope they make some big ones to snatch terrorists! Can you imagine the looks on their faces?


4 posted on 03/15/2013 11:01:15 AM PDT by LibWhacker
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To: dfwgator

7 1/2 shot

Just sayin


5 posted on 03/15/2013 11:02:07 AM PDT by servantboy777
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To: LibWhacker

A giant claw on the bottom of an OV-22 Osprey?


6 posted on 03/15/2013 11:09:00 AM PDT by ryan71 (The republican party is dead to me. Dead. Don't bother trying to revive it.)
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To: LibWhacker

i read this stuff with mixed feelings, i just see this stuff being used against us.


7 posted on 03/15/2013 11:14:01 AM PDT by Secret Agent Man (I can neither confirm or deny that; even if I could, I couldn't - it's classified.)
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To: LibWhacker

I want one. Can they also bring decent light bulbs?


8 posted on 03/15/2013 11:14:10 AM PDT by Hardraade (http://junipersec.wordpress.com (Vendetta))
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To: LibWhacker

A drone grabbed my 48 oz. soda.


9 posted on 03/15/2013 11:16:38 AM PDT by Jyotishi (Seeking the truth, a fact at a time.)
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To: LibWhacker
Lol, I hope they make some big ones to snatch terrorists!

Do you own a gun? Are you critical of the current administration? Have you ever spoken out against the government? If your answer is "yes" to any of these questions, then YOU are the terrorist.

10 posted on 03/15/2013 11:16:59 AM PDT by from occupied ga (Your government is your most dangerous enemy)
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To: Secret Agent Man

Hey, a drone with claws that can grab stuff...what could go wrong?


11 posted on 03/15/2013 11:22:39 AM PDT by rlmorel (1793 French Jacobins and 2012 American Liberals have a lot in common.)
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To: from occupied ga

‘Rats are lame ducks. In fact, their position on guns just might render them extinct ducks. Conservatives are in the ascendancy once again and this technology is more likely to come of age and be used against them than us. It’s just in its infancy now. Have faith. But point taken. If we squander the opportunity again, these things might very well be used against us. The future seems to be ripe with extreme danger at the moment, not only from this technology, but from many others as well. However, there is no turning back. “We” had better get it right this next go round.


12 posted on 03/15/2013 11:29:03 AM PDT by LibWhacker
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To: Secret Agent Man

hussein sure wouldn’t support this out of his love for America.


13 posted on 03/15/2013 11:32:48 AM PDT by onedoug
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To: rlmorel

Every other week or so you find a “lost dog, reward” sign in my neighborhood. All the dogs are small, all were left in the back yard.

Either someone is snatching them to sell, or something is snatching them for lunch.


14 posted on 03/15/2013 11:34:12 AM PDT by EQAndyBuzz (Got a problem? Nothing a drone strike can't fix.)
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To: from occupied ga
Do you own a gun? Are you critical of the current administration? Have you ever spoken out against the government? If your answer is "yes" to any of these questions, then YOU are the terrorist.

My exact thoughts.

15 posted on 03/15/2013 11:37:03 AM PDT by SIDENET
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To: LibWhacker
‘Rats are lame ducks.

I would really like you to be right about this. BUT, 51% of the voters voted for the miserable SOS occupying 1600 pa ave. I'd be willing to bet more of them than not knew what his stance on guns was when they voted for him.

16 posted on 03/15/2013 11:37:14 AM PDT by from occupied ga (Your government is your most dangerous enemy)
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To: EQAndyBuzz
If they disappeared during the day - probably dogknappers. During the night most likely coyotes.
17 posted on 03/15/2013 11:55:24 AM PDT by from occupied ga (Your government is your most dangerous enemy)
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To: EQAndyBuzz

Coyotes


18 posted on 03/15/2013 11:57:58 AM PDT by Cletus.D.Yokel (*Catastrophic Anthropogenic Climate Alteration: The acronym explains the science.)
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To: Secret Agent Man
"I read this stuff with mixed feelings, I just see this stuff being used against us."

BINGO! We have a winnah; give that man a Cupie Doll.

With a "man" like Obama in the White House who hates America, who hates genuine Americans there is no doubt in my mind that all of these "technological assets" WILL be used against us.

19 posted on 03/15/2013 11:58:05 AM PDT by Jmouse007 (Lord deliver us from evil, in Jesus name, amen.)
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To: from occupied ga
"Do you own a gun? Are you critical of the current administration? Have you ever spoken out against the government? If your answer is "yes" to any of these questions, then YOU are the terrorist."

BINGO! We have another winnah; give that man a Cupie Doll.

With a "man" like Obama in the White House who hates America, who hates genuine Americans there is no doubt in my mind that WE are viewed as "terrorists" in the evil mind of Obamessiah and all of these "technological assets" that are being developed WILL be used against US because he deems US THE THREAT!

20 posted on 03/15/2013 12:00:48 PM PDT by Jmouse007 (Lord deliver us from evil, in Jesus name, amen.)
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