美國袖珍型偵察機曝光 全長僅16釐米

A pocket-sized spy drone disguised as a hummingbird has been unveiled by a major Pentagon contractor measuring just 16 centimetres and weighing less than an AA battery.
　　近日，美國五角大樓披露了一項最新利器：可以裝進口袋的偵察機，其僞裝成蜂鳥的外型，重量還不及一直AA電池。

The mini spy plane can fly up to 11 miles an hour and took five years to develop at a cost of $4million.

這種迷你偵察機的最高時速可達每小時11英里，研發耗時5年，前後投入更是達到了400萬美元。

Army chiefs hope to use the drone’s tiny camera to spy on enemy positions in war zones without arousing detection and eventually deploy it into both rural and urban environments.

軍方寄希望於這種微型探測器可以在戰時幫助確定地方的具體所在位置，並且不被發現，最終在城市與鄉村地區部署開來。

Experts hope the drone, which can fly just by flapping its wings, compared with current models which rely on propellers, will eventually be able to swoop through open windows and perch on power lines.

專家們希望這種靠着震動雙翅便能飛行的“蜂鳥”可以達到輕易傳過打開的窗戶和停留在電線上的水平。

The demonstration by AeroVironment – one of the world’s biggest drone suppliers – lasted eight minutes and saw the new creation fly through a door into an building and out again, and withstand winds of five miles per hour.

製造商利用八分鐘的時間展示了這項產品，“蜂鳥”經過一扇門後進入大廈最終又飛了出來，同時，它足以抵抗每小時5英里的風力。

Todd Hylton, Hummingbird programme manager for the Pentagon’s research arm said it ‘paves the way for a new generation of aircraft with the agility and appearance of small birds.’Matt Keennon, AeroVironment’s manager on the project, said the milestone of building a machine inspired by nature pushes the limits of aerodynamics.

研究人員稱這種“蜂鳥”將開啓了研發靈活度與體積與小鳥一般的新一代的飛行器的大門，同時也是一項受大自然啓發而創的挑戰空氣動力學的發明的里程碑。

Two years ago the company showed off its first Hummingbird prototype, managing just 20 seconds. The latest flight lasted eight minutes, with engineers expecting longer flights as development continues.

這家公司在兩年前所展示的此類模型的飛行之間僅有20秒所有，如今已經達到了8分鐘，據稱，隨着技術的不斷提高，飛行時間有望喜劇演唱。

AeroVironment already produces a number of different drones for the US Army.

這家公司已經爲美國軍方生產了衆多不同種類的無人戰機。

Last year it had 2,182 orders from the army for its Raven drone, which weighs four pounds with a wingspan of four-and-a-half feet.

去年其出品的“烏鴉”無人飛機便收到了2182份訂單，這種飛機僅中4磅，機翼長度達到了4英寸半。