This New Flying Car Could Finally Deliver on the ‘Jetsons’ Promise

Discussion in 'Science' started by Space_Time, Jul 1, 2020.

  1. Space_Time

    Space_Time Well-Known Member

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    I didn't know the idea of a flying car was 100 years old. Would you ride in one? Rather like planes when you're up in the air if something goes wrong you can't just pull over to the side of the road:
     
  2. (original)late

    (original)late Banned

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    Your average Joe has no business flying.

    There are just so many ways to die.
     
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  3. OldManOnFire

    OldManOnFire Well-Known Member

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    It's a novel idea but I can't imagine the FAA will be thrilled about 1000's of these flying cars buzzing around congested and populated areas...
     
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  4. WillReadmore

    WillReadmore Well-Known Member

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    Absolutely.

    We get away with a small number of helicopters in metro areas today, because there are very few of them and because they are operated by highly trained and licensed pilots.

    As the numbers of flying objects goes up, traffic control will get MORE significant - meaning the George Jetson will never be allowed to be more than a passenger.
     
  5. WillReadmore

    WillReadmore Well-Known Member

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    Those on the ground below wouldn't be happy, either!
     
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  6. An Taibhse

    An Taibhse Well-Known Member

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    It’s difficult for many to navigate a supermarket in 2D without bumping into someone; hard to imagine people navigating, communicating, avoiding each other in 3D and flying with all those floating traffic signs... yeah sure. Then, keeping an air vehicle maintained for safety? For all weather flight? .... sure now. There is a reason the Jetsons is a cartoon.
    Btw, it would be far easier to build a flying vehicle of the sort envisioned by the fantasy crowd than to imaging building the physical/virtual infrastructure for managing the air space. And, what of those on the ground if a vehicle must descend in distress. Who has the R-O-W?
    For the long foreseeable future, it’s hard for me to imaging the practicality rising above the role of air taxi between a handful of highly regulated locations.
     
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  7. One Mind

    One Mind Well-Known Member Past Donor

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    I will wait for the anti gravity technology, thank you very much.
     
  8. WillReadmore

    WillReadmore Well-Known Member

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    Agreed.

    And, that needs to work for all the pieces of flying car that come from collsiions with buildings, above ground cables, other flying cars, etc.
     
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  9. OldManOnFire

    OldManOnFire Well-Known Member

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    The more I think about this the more I believe it will never come to fruition FOR THE MASSES. Maybe for a few people living in rural areas but never for the masses. The simple reason is we can't manage tens of 1000's of flying vehicles all in close proximity in populated areas ascending and descending at random in every location...
     
  10. An Taibhse

    An Taibhse Well-Known Member

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    Currently, part of the training for obtaining a private pilot’s certificate is understanding restrictions imposed on pilots based on their class of certificate, understanding flight safety (including maintaining air separation and ground obstacles), understanding airspace restrictions and rules, understanding how weather can impact flying conditions as well as restrictions associated with a class of certificate, and understanding communication and landing/take off protocols within the different air spaces. Among the more difficult aspects of flying for a novice is developing the ability of thinking ahead (I.e., no brakes in the air) and thinking in, and developing 3D awareness (knowing where things are in your proximity... where other planes are in relation to you and where to expect they will be). It is challenging anywhere, but significantly more so near large population centers are served by multiple air ports with mixed air space delineations and classes. Even without the congestion imagined with ‘The Masses’ flying, I have flown in areas that are challenging, even a few requiring coordination with multiple air control centers. It can be stressful, and initially overwhelming for novices to maintain situation awareness when being bombarded with sensory and communication information that must be cognitively assembled into a coherent understanding of the current state of things as well as what they will be.
    Then there are the rules and regulations for maintaining air vehicle flight worthiness... (no place to pull over in flight for mechanical emergencies).
    Any future scenario of the general adoption of flying vehicles will require the development of air space delineations and rules integrated with existing air space as well as rules for managing every thing such as air vehicle separation, different VFR/IFR constraints, takeoff/landing protocols, control and communication protocols, and far more. I can imagine, the requirements for qualification for competently safely flying in such an environment would be daunting, perhaps exceeding the capability of most.
    I personally don’t anticipate mass use of personal flying vehicles without significant advance of technology that can manage autonomous flight in a highly 3D mapped/coordinated air space with some high level of global (or at least regional) coordination of flying vehicles within that air space. In the 2D world, we are still a considerable way from seeing our 2D world filled with autonomous vehicles and that potential is coming, but will likely take considerable time to develop for specialized transport, such as in long haul trucking, perhaps a bit further with mass transport (buses), then, perhaps Taxi style services long before it becomes a tech for common use (lots tech yet to develop). Doing the same for 3D transport, will be many magnitudes more complex.
    My suspicion for the driving force for the development of 3D flying vehicle autonomous coordination technology will the Military as they work out first, autonomous 2D coordinated vehicle ground force tech, followed by developing the tech for coordinating drone swarms. Watch DARPA’s tech development vectors for clues (they are a huge coordinating force already for developing 2D autonomous vehicle technology).
    One last thought, imagine a functioning tech for coordinating large numbers of aerial vehicles. Then imaging it as a juicy terrorist target.
     
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  11. OldManOnFire

    OldManOnFire Well-Known Member

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    Yes...all great info and reasons why flying cars will not fill the skies...
     
  12. Monash

    Monash Well-Known Member

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    I anticipate getting my flying car about the same time I get my paperless toilet.
     

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