Actually, it’s a bit of both. An “ornithopter” (an aircraft powered by flapping wings), like the one gripped by mechanical-engineering student Jeffrey V. Hogge (BS ’06), is the latest in surveillance technology. Such tiny radio-controlled devices may someday maneuver into difficult locations—like battlefields, mountain cliffs, unsafe buildings—hover like a hummingbird, and transmit video to distant observers.
Hogge is a part of the team of mechanical engineering students that built this ornithopter to compete in the 10th Annual International Micro Air Vehicles Competition, which was held in Utah County in May.
Find additional information at more.byu.edu/ornithopter