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Jiquay
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52 minutes ago, Mike Chell said:

I never expected transporters, always realizing the impossibility of turning matter into energy without the accompanying megaton explosion.  BUT, I did expect flying cars with self driving capabilities and cyborg alternatives to growing old and dying.

 

Flying cars in the fifties.....I think the first one in 1949.

"Life is over rated, nobody gets out alive."

Image result for flying cars of the fifties

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Your Flying Car May Be Almost Here

 
Jeremy Bogaisky
Jeremy Bogaisky Forbes Staff
May 24, 2018, 04:18pm 8,210 views #NewTech

This story appears in the May 31, 2018 issue of Forbes. Subscribe

For eons, personal aerial vehicles have been seen as a marker of the arrival of the future. Now a number of companies are working on commercializing flying cars and autonomous air taxis (generally bulbous pods driven by electric-powered rotors). Here are some of the major players and their current development status. Regulatory, cost and technology limitations make it unlikely that many city-dwellers will wing their way to work anytime soon, but for certain uses, the ferment of activity is making the future look a lot of closer.

(The following is expanded from the magazine version.)

PAL-V Liberty

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CMO Markus Hess of the Dutch flying car developer PAL-V poses next to one of the company's prototypes on May 30, 2017. (EMMANUEL DUNAND/AFP/Getty Images)

What is it? Two-seat, gas-powered gyrocopter with a flying range of about 250 miles at maximum weight. In car mode, the Dutch company says the three-wheeled vehicle can hit 100 mph.

 

 

 

Current phase: Applying for safety certification in Europe; 90 initial production models for sale from $399,000.

When? The company says it will make first deliveries in Europe in 2019.

Ehang 184

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The Ehang 184 carries a passenger into the air on Feb. 6 in Guangzhou, China. (Photo by Feng Zhoufeng/Southern Metropolis Daily/VCG via Getty Images)

 

What? Electric drone capable of vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) and a top speed of 80 mph. It's only able to stay aloft for 25 minutes (battery technology has a ways to go to enable longer flight times), but the company says its range (about 25 miles) is enough to establish a viable air taxi service in most cities. Why 184? Because it's designed to carry one passenger and has eight propellers on four arms.

Current phase: Testing. The company said in February it had conducted over 1,000 test flights, including some with human passengers.

When? Not clear. A target start date of July 2017 announced by Dubai for a pilotless air taxi service there came and went. Ehang says it's still hoping to get in the air in Dubai, and it's working with Chinese authorities to establish airworthiness standards.

Volocopter 2X

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A Volocopter prototype flies in front of the Burj Khalifa, the world's tallest tower, during a test flight in Dubai, Sept. 26, 2017. (AP Photo/Kamran Jebreili)

What? Two-seat electric VTOL multicopter with 18 rotors, with a maximum flight time of 27 minutes and range of 17 miles. Can be piloted or operated autonomously.

Current phase: Testing. Volocopter has provisional certification for manned flight in Germany. The Daimler-backed company has staged demonstration flights in Las Vegas and Dubai, where it is working with transportation authorities on laying the groundwork for establishing autonomous air taxi service there.

When? The company hopes to establish its first point-to-point route in the next two to three years and a full-fledged, multi-hub urban air taxi system within the next 10 years.

Terrafugia Transition

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The Transition landing at Lawrence Municipal Airport in Massachusetts on Jan. 13, 2016. (Terrafugia / Barcroft Cars / Barcroft Media via Getty Images)

What? Two-seat, folding-wing flying car with a range of 400 miles in the air; on the ground, it will be capable of "highway speeds," Massachusetts-based Terrafugia says. Runs on premium gasoline.

Current phase: After being acquired last year by Zhejiang Geely, the company, founded in 2006 by a team of MIT grads, says it's working on a new production prototype with enhancements under the hood, leveraging the engineering expertise of the Chinese automaker's Volvo division.

When? First deliveries planned for 2019.

Aurora Flight Sciences eVTOL

 

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Artist's renditionCOURTESY OF AURORA FLIGHT SCIENCES

What? Three-seat electric with eight rotors for vertical takeoff and landing and a fixed wing and rear propeller, enabling more efficient forward flight than a multicopter. Piloted initially but designed for autonomous operation.

Current phase: Testing. One of five companies working to design vehicles for Uber's planned air taxi service, the innovative UAV developer was acquired last year by Boeing, giving it a deep well of capital and engineering resources to tap.

When? Uber aims to start demoing service in 2020 in Dallas, L.A. and Dubai, with commercial launch in 2023. Don't be surprised if the dates slip: regulatory questions loom large, and a battery capable of meeting the performance specs Uber envisions doesn't yet exist.

Lilium

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Artist's renditionCOURTESY OF LILIUM

What? Five-seat VTOL jet featuring fixed wings with 12 tilting flaps bearing 36 electric engines.

Current phase: The German company tested a two-seat version of the jet last year and secured $90 million in funding from investors including Tencent and Twitter co-founder Ev Williams.

When? The company is aiming for its first manned test flight in 2019 and to launch an on-demand air taxi service in 2025.

Kitty Hawk Cora

 

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Artist's renditionCOURTESY OF KITTY HAWK

What? Two-seat electric drone with 12 lift fans for vertical takeoff and landing and a rear propeller and fixed wing for forward flight. Range of 60 miles at a cruising speed of 110 mph.

Current phase: The secretive California startup, bankrolled by Google's Larry Page and helmed by former Google X chief Sebastian Thrun, revealed in March that it was testing Cora in New Zealand with the aim of launching an air taxi service.

When? Unknown

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Nope ... all of those are airplanes or helicopters.  None of them can be driven through a city or town.  Above them, yes, but not through. 

I want anti-gravity, floating/flying cars that can be parked in my drive or in a parking space at Walmart without breaking down the wings or props.

Actually, I don't want wings or props at all.  Anti-gravity, if we ever discover it, will also serve as the drive unit.

 

Blade Runner 2049

kspinner_crash_0005.jpg

 

Total Recall

12-hover-car.jpg

 

Transit Connect !!!

 

getImage.jpg.824b956e4bc2ed95b7cbadd6fdd39471.jpg

 

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11 hours ago, Jiquay said:

Yeah, I'm gonna trust the same minds that programmed my GPS to drive my car - the ones that say I can buy gas right across the street at a garage that hasn't sold gas since 1926, & that says my house (by address) is 7 doors down the street...

 

GK

Uh-huh, that's a helluva lot more trust than I got............

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My GPS works just fine.  So does my laptop computer that I use at home.

One thing I DON'T need, a GPS/laptop/keyboard in my phone.  I still have my flip phone.  No texting on my phone account, so I only pay $35.00 a month, unlimited calling.

 

Of course, none of that matters, if we get the self driving cars.

I'd ride the train/bus if it took me directly from home to work ... but nothing like that exist where I live.

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On 6/29/2018 at 8:56 PM, Mike Chell said:

My GPS works just fine.  So does my laptop computer that I use at home.

One thing I DON'T need, a GPS/laptop/keyboard in my phone.  I still have my flip phone.  No texting on my phone account, so I only pay $35.00 a month, unlimited calling.

That's certainly not a spectacular deal on a phone

 

I have unlimited talk, text and data (first 2 gig at 4G, after that 2G) on my Smartphone for $27 per month.  You do need to own your own phones.  I buy mine used on eBay for $50 to $75 or so and 'upgrade' when the older models get cheap . . . . like me  :thumbsup:  Currently using a Samsung Galaxy S4 that I bought a couple years ago.  Does everything I need and I use the data a lot.  It gets way more use than my laptop, because I don't carry a laptop with me everywhere.  Not sure how I'd get by without text and e-mail on my phone . . . . but I have 5 grandkids and I assume your dogs don't text you very often   :puppy_kiss:

 

Page Plus  -  https://www.pagepluscellular.com/plans/

 

Don

Edited by Beta Don
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As always ... your quoted price is before taxes and fees.

"Prices do not include taxes and fees"

 

I am not saying your price isn't better ... since I don't know what you're actually paying, but $35 is what I pay, total.  (invoice)
 

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For the first 3 or 4 years we were with Page Plus, there were zero taxes and fees . . . . until some other carriers complained.  They're still minimal.  The total is less than $30.  A $35 plan which gives you nothing but unlimited calling doesn't compare well to one $5 cheaper which gives you unlimited calling, texting and data.   But, if it meets your needs and you get a free phone now and then, maybe it's worth it

 

Don

Edited by Beta Don
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15 hours ago, Mike Chell said:

Those scooters in the first pictures are not the solar powered one above. 

They have brakes for stopping, but they're manual labor scooters.

<iframe width="820" height="460" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/zOMYOBBRtM8" frameborder="0" allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen></iframe>

 

 

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