Megalith
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- Aug 20, 2006
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Traditional landing skids are pretty much limited to working on level surfaces. DARPA is working on some folding legs that could replace them and allow helicopters to take off and land on a much larger assortment of terrain.
The adaptive system replaces standard landing gear with four articulated, jointed legs that are able to fold up next to the helicopters fuselage while in flight and are equipped with force-sensitive contact sensors in their feet. During landing, each leg extends and uses its sensors to determine in real time the appropriate angle to assume to ensure that the helicopter stays level and minimize any risk of the rotor touching the landing area.
The adaptive system replaces standard landing gear with four articulated, jointed legs that are able to fold up next to the helicopters fuselage while in flight and are equipped with force-sensitive contact sensors in their feet. During landing, each leg extends and uses its sensors to determine in real time the appropriate angle to assume to ensure that the helicopter stays level and minimize any risk of the rotor touching the landing area.