When someone calls out and tell you to look at a flying bird, you might ignore. But what if that bird that they referred to is a robot bird? Yes ladies and gentlemen, now robotic birds can fly just like real bird, and they don’t just use any propellers, they just flappy wings!

This is the SmartBird, and he’s not the size of Big Bird from Sesame Street. In fact, he’s only 1-pound heavy, and has wingspan of a very huge 6-feet. What’s more, it can also take off and land with no assistance, while you control the route of its flight from the ground using a ZigBee radio.

“This bionic technology-bearer, which is inspired by the herring gull, can start, fly and land autonomously — with no additional drive mechanism. Its wings not only beat up and down, but also twist at specific angles. This is made possible by an active articulated torsional drive unit, which in combination with a complex control system attains an unprecedented level of efficiency in flight operation.”

SOURCE via Dvice