New Ways To Fly

It might seem after more than 100 years, we've figured out the best ways to fly, but creative folks insist on continuing to try new technologies. One young inventor, Aaron Wypyszynski, of Meridianville, Alabama, is working on a "wingboard" that enthusiasts could ride, like a kind of waterski, in the wake of an airplane. "It combines the best of wingsuit flying, of JetMan, and skydiving, all in one sport," he says. "I want to push the limits." He's been trying out his ideas using prototypes built with a 3-D printer and towed behind an RC model airplane. The latest version, says Wypyszynski, shows the wingboard is "capable of stable controlled flight [and] also shows just how much fun it would be to ride."Another new idea comes from the creative minds at Festo, a German technology company.

Festo has designed a set of drones it calls "eMotion Spheres," which are capable of flying without collision even in a confined space. Each of the helium-filled spheres is driven by a set of eight small propellers. "The drives are adaptive and supply the same efficient thrust in a forward and reverse direction, which is a first when it comes to flying objects," according to Festo's website. The spheres are networked into a central computer so each one can move without colliding with the others. Even when a random force is introduced -- represented in the video below by a human interacting with the spheres -- the spheres respond automatically to avoid collisions. Festo previously flew a flapping-wing UAV and an unusual floating-wing design that propels itself by flipping inside out.