A car shape unique vehicle that has more in
common with a helicopter than your passenger sedan is currently
under development in Israel. The proposed X-hawk and its prototype
the cityhawk both look like a batman style car but use a patented
vane control system that housed two large fans in the front and
back of the vehicle. the passenger compartment takes up the space
in between.
The X-Hawk is a ‘rotorless’ Vertical-Take-Off and Landing (VTOL)
vehicle. To be more precise, it is a vehicle that has the VTOL
capability of a helicopter, but without the exposed rotors that
make it dangerous or impossible for helicopters to manoeuvre in
complex urban and natural environments.
In spite of its revolutionary appearance and capabilities, X-Hawk
is actually rooted in technologies that are proven and have been
around for quite some time. The key to the vehicle is in its
unique integration of these technologies together with a number of
patents that are the result of UrbanAeronautics twenty-five years
of experience in the field of vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL).
Vehicles known as "Flying Jeeps" that looked very much like X-Hawk
were built and flown by the Piasecki Company and the U.S. Army and
Navy in the early 60's. These vehicles proved the basic viability
of a ducted, dual-fan configuration but had limitations in
controllability and payload capacity that had no technological
solutions at the time.
Since the 60's, computerized flight control technology known as
"fly-by-wire" has evolved to a level where aircraft ranging from
jumbo passenger jets, to fighter jets and helicopters are largely
controlled by on-board computers that simplify the complexity of
piloting aircraft. In addition, flyby- wire technology
significantly reduces the weight of aircraft by replacing heavy
mechanics with electronic controls.
Technological advances that have contributed to "upgrading" the
flying jeep concept include advanced composite materials that make
the vehicle lighter and stronger and modern turbine engines that
are significantly lighter and more powerful than those available
in the 60's.
Moreover, X-Hawk’s modular cargo bay allows for tailor-made, task
specific configurations that enable the vehicle to be an
all-around workhorse. Some of the most obvious applications
include, aerial medical access and evacuation, power-line
maintenance, bridge inspection and ship-to-shore taxi service, to
name a few.
Contained rotors and compact design allow the vehicle to safely
hover and/or land in congested areas without endangering either
itself or the environment. The vehicle can even land in a crowd of
people without compromising their safety.
The capability to sustain a stable hover while in direct contact
with a wall or the side of a mountain makes possible comfortable
access to virtually any location, be it the window of a high-rise
building in a major city or a remote mountain ridge in the
wilderness.
Galvin Manufacturing Corporation introduced the
first car radio in 1930. It was named "Motorola" linking the ideas
of "motion" and "sound." Motorola later becomes the brand name for
all Galvin Manufacturing Corporation's products.
