The roboticists at the University of Pennsylvania's GRASP lab have added music to their amazing autonomous quadrotors' bag of tricks. Now that they've mastered flying in formation, the tiny robocopters are exploring their arty side by performing music.
The quadrotor team thought long and hard about just what song they'd use to demonstrate their impressive vehicles' capabilities. After debating the themes from Star Wars, Rocky and the James Bond films, they decided the winner is ... 007.
The choice had more to do with the relative simplicity of the tune, not favoritism to a specific movie genre, according to Kurtis Sensenig, who produced the video. "It's a more practical song because of the note structure," he said.
Hearing the quadrotors perform music is one thing, but seeing them making such precise maneuvers with little wasted movement or wobbling continues to impress.
Next we'd like to see a full symphony's worth of instruments laid out in the lab ...
Video: University of Pennsylvania GRASP Lab
