Hirobo’s Futuristic One-Man Electric Helicopter is the Ultimate James Bond Gadget
Posted By Lidija Grozdanic On November 19, 2012 @ 5:08 pm In carousel showcase,energy efficiency,green gadgets,Green Transportation,News | No Comments
Compact, silent and futuristic, Hirobo [4]’s one-man electric helicopter looks like the ultimate James Bond gadget [5]! Recently showcased at an expo in Nagoya, the helicopter prototype can travel up to 100km/h (62 mph) and fly for 30 minutes at a time. The one-seater chopper is currently under development for use as personal transportation and emergency relief.
The helicopter is equipped with an electric engine [6] that doesn’t produce any noise or pollution. Its predecessor (developed under the name GEN H-4) claimed to be the world’s smallest manned helicopter [7]. It was also much cheaper, but it used noisy gasoline.
According to the company, the all-electric helicopter will be sold for 30 million yen ($375,000). The unmanned models will be significantly cheaper, at 10 million yen (over $120,000). Hirobo also hopes to develop two-seater versions, as their market researches show great potential for mass production. They believe the domestic market alone for this kind of technology will grow to 10 billion yen (over $120 million) by 2021.
+ Hirobo [4]
Via Response.jp [8] and BonjourLife [9]
Article printed from Inhabitat – Sustainable Design Innovation, Eco Architecture, Green Building: http://inhabitat.com
URL to article: http://inhabitat.com/hirobos-futuristic-one-man-electric-helicopter-is-the-ultimate-james-bond-gadget/
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[3] Email: mailto:?subject=http://inhabitat.com/hirobos-futuristic-one-man-electric-helicopter-is-the-ultimate-james-bond-gadget/
[4] Hirobo: http://model.hirobo.co.jp/english/
[5] James Bond gadget: http://inhabitat.com/top-8-green-gadgets-worthy-of-james-bond/
[6] electric engine: http://inhabitat.com/toyota-developing-electric-motor-with-less-rare-earth-metals/
[7] smallest manned helicopter: http://inhabitat.com/worlds-first-manned-electric-helicopter-takes-flight/pascal-chretien-electric-helicopter-5/
[8] Response.jp: http://response.jp/article/2012/10/11/182904.html
[9] BonjourLife: http://bonjourlife.com/hirobo-one-man-electric-helicopter/
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