Nano Air Vehicle Attracts Money

From spaceref.com:

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) awarded Lockheed Martin a $1.7-million, 10-month contract to design a revolutionary remote-controlled nano air vehicle (NAV) that will collect military intelligence indoors and outdoors on the urban battlefield.

Lockheed Martin Advanced Technology Laboratories (ATL) leads a team that will design a remote-controlled NAV, similar in size and shape to a maple tree seed. A chemical rocket enclosed in its one-bladed wing will power a sensor payload module more than 1,100 yards.

Besides controlling lift and pitch, the wing will also house telemetry, communications, navigation, imaging sensors, and battery power. The NAV will be about 1.5 inches long and have a maximum takeoff weight of about 0.35 ounces.

In typical operation, a warfighter will launch the NAV and fly it toward the target by viewing its flight path through a camera embedded in the wing. Like a maple tree seed, the one-bladed device will rotate in flight, but its camera will provide a stable forward view and transmit images back to a small, hand-held display. As the system matures, a simple autopilot aboard the NAV will provide limited autonomous operations. Once the NAV delivers its payload, it will return to the warfighter for collection and refurbishment.

The contract will fund conceptual design and risk reduction using prototypes of the engine, airframe, flight control system, and communications system as well as computer models of the guidance system and sensors. Following a successful preliminary design review planned for summer 2007 and a sequence of go/no-go tests, DARPA may fund an additional 18-month period during which Lockheed Martin will design and test a flying prototype.

Lockheed Martin to Design Nano Air Vehicle to Monitor the Urban Battlefield | SpaceRef - Your Space Reference