Military Transformers: 20 Innovative Defense Technologies
May 15, 2012 11:00 AM Department of Defense technologies under development, from brainy microchips to battlefield transformer vehicles, promise to make the U.S. military more nimble. Here's a visual tour of 20 breakthrough ideas.
Flying Circuit Board
A "disposable aircraft," the CICADA Mark III is comprised simply of a printed circuit board, which minimizes wiring and makes it fast and inexpensive to assemble. (CICADA stands for Close-In Covert Autonomous Disposable Aircraft.) Resembling a toy airplane, it can accommodate light payloads, such as chemical, biological, and other signals intelligence sensors. Other electronic payloads can be incorporated by updating the circuit board and "re-winging" the aircraft.
Credit: U.S. Naval Research Laboratory
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