Cityscape: © Julio Chrisostomo
Fly™ Citycopter
Another Possible Way
(Concept Aerial Vehicle)
©2014 Eduardo Galvani
Another Possible Way
(Concept Aerial Vehicle)
©2014 Eduardo Galvani
Most cities are builded over a very limited space. Since the modern car was invented, is easy to see that the urban traffic gets more complicated and overflowing as faster as cities and the urban population grows, and that the pollution caused by CO2 emission is letting the urban atmosphere each time worse. This is actually a well known and recurrent issue that worries many people around the world and lacks for urgent and efficient solutions.
In Paris, this year, government provided public transportation for free and asked people to hang out their cars for 3 days in an attempt of battle against the intense pollution of the air. Also in this year, in Beijing (China), giant LCD panels were used to show a virtual sunset to pedestrians while the city was covered by a very dense and polluted atmosphere hiding the natural horizon. Also, still in this year, in the first week of april, some cities of UK were submersed in one of the heaviest pollution fog ever.
After several years of science stringent advices about the evidences of the global warming and it's causes associated to the CO2 emission, the early strong wave of "green energy", more than never, represents a human effort in this new challenge: rethink the gereration and consumption of energy.
Otherwise, along the time, as this new scenery appears, technology has also turned more and more advanced, revolutionizing the industry and bringing new possibilities and many benefits in all areas of human life. The early investments in clean energy clear created a promising field of new opportunities to the next era.
Combined with increased offer of new stronger and lighter materials, the emergence of most efficient electric engines and batteries are slowly turning the transportation industry upside down. The recent collapse of Detroit, in US, is probably much related with that. Even the actual North American and the global crisis also has probably its tale in these facts.
With the Internet and the fast growth of globalization, people are understanding much better where their resources comes from, and how they can learn from the others to cultivate new habits to provide a better quality of life and help them to collaborate with a new reality for all.
Thinking about this new emerging reality, Fly™ Citycopter was conceived as an urban aerial vehicle. Electricity powered and sun rechargeable, Fly™ is "eco-friendly", most efficient, economic and cheaper than a common helicopter. It is also easier to control, more silent and less vibrant.
To fly is an ancient dream that perhaps habits the human imaginary since ever, but for many people, it is also the origin of one of their biggest fears, and helicopter is really still viewed as an exotic kind of transportation for few people, but, since its invention, a very long time has past, and now, just in the beginning of the XXI century, mostly people understand that it's really a very practical and safe kind of transportation, so its popularity is maybe yet restricted only because of its still elevated costs and the wrong idea of extremely high difficult to pilot.
While urban trains already are a very efficient and clean kind of collective transportation, comparing to aerial vehicles, they are also still much limited when we think about their fixed courses, and it requires large investments to increase their reaches. Although blimps are also a very clean and efficient flight option for long distances, they are not so small, fast and precise as Fly™ can be. And electric cars are a real good solution for the energy and CO2 emission issue, but they still can't escape from the crowded streets.
Because of its characteristics, Fly™, in a near future, would still helps to solve the problem of out of space in streets of most cities, where the number of cars is now extremely high and causing too much pollution. Automobile traffic is still increasing fast, and each time there are much more people using the same ways at the same time. More than 50% of the cars are running with only 1 person, it seems really too much energy and CO2 emission in vain. Beyond that, in urban centers of the major cities, not rare, is easy to spend about 1h to move less than 5 miles because of the slow traffic. It's an absurd if compared with flying, which the same dislocation would be made using only 1/20 (or less) of this time, energy and gas emission.
Depending on the government and industry investments, in not much time, aerial vehicles can be not only much more practical and useful for many people around the world, but much more efficient, accessible and optimized for this time of global warming war. For example, in some metropolis, Fly™ would be a great option as aerial taxi and for small deliveries.
Intending an easier and better experience on flight, Fly™ is also equipped with last technology system for aerial navigation, allowing auto take-off, auto pilot, auto landing, flight planning and can be easy remotely controlled in short distances with safe obstacle detection. It's rotors are automatically directed by an accelerometer system for a better flight stabilization.
Fly™ has cyclic joysticks with 6 configurable buttons each one. Is the first electric helicopter concept with touch screen digital panels with Flight Management System (FMS) and all the necessary Flight Instruments, as Altimeter, Attitude indicator, Airspeed indicator, Compass, Heading indicator, Vertical speed indicator, Course Deviation Indicator, Radio Magnetic Indicator and more.
Showing all the instruments at only one screen is a choice which represents a significant change in the way we understand and control the flight experience. This solution means an evolution for a cleaner cockpit with minimalist visual, while still keeps easy accessibility to all parameters which the pilot must be on. Also, from actual software technology, is already possible to develop special application systems, more based on voice alerts, sounds and multi-touch screens, optimizing the way pilots control the parameters of the flight.
The electricity powered engine not only changes the reality and our perspectives and perceptions about its environment's interference, but, in combination with its innovative aerodynamic, creates a singular experience of air navigation, much more silent, precise, accessible and less vibrant.
With very light structure, Fly™ is mostly made from carbon, aluminum and titanium, and part of its careen is covered with solar cells which allows it to generate energy during the flight, both simple solution that collaborates for a better experience and helps to reduce still more the costs of the flight. In case of rotor fail, the safe system launches its automatic central parachute which holds all the vehicle.
Its electrical engine works at 320hp, powered by a Lithium Ion Battery which allows around 300 miles/150min of autonomy, 6h for full battery recharging and easy removable battery system for continuous flight.
Specifications:
Dimensions: 6.34 x 5.20 x 5.49 m
Weight: 1.110 kg
Max Altitude: 12.000 ft
Max Speed: 120 miles per hour
Baggage loading: 210 lb / 480 lt
Ready to fly in 1 minute
Weight: 1.110 kg
Max Altitude: 12.000 ft
Max Speed: 120 miles per hour
Baggage loading: 210 lb / 480 lt
Ready to fly in 1 minute
Smart, cheap and convenient, Fly™ is an ideal solution for urban transportation, would naturally becomes popular and helps increase the urban aerial traffic fast. So, a simple solution was thought for the implementation of this new reality: as more people uses Fly™ (or another aerial vehicles) in their countries, at the same time of investing in new roads and automobile infrastructure, governments may increase their investments in public airports and aerial traffic control.
Fly™ is really yet much more just a visual representation of an ideal for the future of aerial transportation, but it reflects some social and ecological principles which everyone would be awaked to face the next challenges of the XXI century with confidence and hope to be collaborating with a better world for all.
For now, maybe the best goal of the concept is just to inspire creative people from the industry of transportation about another possible ways to make a new reality comes true as soon as we can imagine, to show that these possibilities are already in our hands, and that sometimes we just need a break to rethink what way is better to go next.
Reviews
"Galvani's futuristic vision calls for a superlight personal helicopter that would be able to take off, fly and land while in autopilot mode."
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"We have all imagined the concept of flying cars whizzing past us in the future. This idea has been explored by scientists and certainly in futuristic films, however Eduardo Galvani has taken the idea a step further with his creation called the Fly Citycopter."
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"Aesthetically, t's a little steampunk and a lot cool!"
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"The Citycopter isn't just cool to look at either, because its specification would make it agile enough to dip in and out of inner cities with ease."
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"The idea behind the very compact and beautiful designs is not just about looking good, however. Not only could the designs assist safer transport, but also reduce carbon emissions that continuously puncture the atmosphere. "
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"O helicóptero pessoal, que foi desenvolvido para transportar pessoas em torno de cidades de maneira ecológica, lembra o veículo utilizado pelos "Jetsons", famoso desenho criado na década de 1960 que mostrava como seria a tecnologia e a vida de uma família do futuro."
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"A Brazilian, inspired by the humble fly has invented a futuristic Fly — a vehicle that can help people beat traffic."
