Earlier quoted context omitted.
Kind of how Android is "open" to OEMs, not you .
Is reflashing your phone so hard?
It is if the bootloader is locked.
Larry Page’s startups working on flying cars
131–140 of 218 posts
Re: Larry Page’s startups working on flying cars
#132What problems do flying cars solve? I know it looks cool but is there some huge thing that would get solved with this?
Cars and trucks are relegated to the 2d grid of streets. They consume an inordinate amount of space, and require that all travel occur in series down a road. When an accident occurs, this disrupts the flow of traffic down that path, and also frequently disrupts the flow of surrounding roads as drivers seek alternate routes around the problem. Roads wear down over time, and require maintenance to repair. Salt and chem…
I'm actually currently working on projects related to traffic management systems for UAS. I'd say that currently air travel is much more complicated than street travel. And there is a lot of research and engineering that needs to be done before we can safely handle large amounts of UAS traffic.
For one, UAS take up more space than cars. Sure they can be smaller, but operators/systems need more space to safely fly. Two, we don't have systems in place to handle large amounts of traffic. Traffic on roads is much simpler. You have well defined routes, and you have well-defined regulations to safely handle adverse driving situations. UAS do not currently have systems that can automatically handle large amounts of traffic or adverse flying conditions. Plus the autonomous systems are currently not quite up to a human pilot's ability to fly. There may be some very advanced autonomous flight systems, but there isn't anything that could handle the amount of traffic comparable to current street traffic.
I think this is definitely an exciting time for autonomous flight. But I also think we are just really starting to get around to solving the problems caused by UAS. I don't know if it's fair to compare large amounts of UAS traffic to street traffic. I think the state of UAS traffic management is closer to the state of street traffic 100 or so years ago. UAS safety systems and airspace regulations definitely aren't sophisticated.
Re: Larry Page’s startups working on flying cars
#133Earlier quoted context omitted.
If self-flying taxi average flight times are 15 min, does this matter?
It does if you want to operate your self-flying taxi in an economically sound manner. All the time that it is on the ground it is not making money. Which means you'll be charging it when the number of requested rides is low, so you'll need to make a number (possibly quite a large number) of 15 minute rides before you get to recharge.
15 minute flight, 15 minute back to depot, 5 minute battery swap, charge batteries at the depot.
Re: Larry Page’s startups working on flying cars
#134I just emailed the people at Moller this week asking them what the biggest challenge in making a flying car was. Their reply was: Thanks for reaching out to Moller International. Your question is a good one, with a multitude of answers. For now, I’ll explain 3 of the biggest factors. First, there is a lot of FAA and government regulations regarding aircraft. Airworthiness certification is a lengthy process, and depen…
So, Moller claims to have a flying car, but can't afford to get it tested? Or that they could make a flying car, if they had enough money and time to build and test it? No technical challenges?
Uh-huh.
Re: Larry Page’s startups working on flying cars
#135Earlier quoted context omitted.
> Preflight checks and flight safety. Larry should first build normal small aircraft that can do without constant manual checks before flight. Omg, this. The amount of checks required for any sort of aircraft is ridiculous. A lot of it involves button pushing and checking status. This could be automated. For instance, for a cessna 150: STARTING ENGINE Mixture – RICH Carb heat – COLD Prime – AS REQUIRED Master switch…
The examples you gave take no more than 30 seconds. Sure, FADEC can eliminate most of them, but they're quick. Other examples–checking the oil, the tank sumps, the intake, the tires, the flap tracks, the rudder bolt(s), the wing tips, the tailwheel springs, etc.–are the stuff that software largely can't replace, and are the more time-consuming part of taking off. Put another way, the latest fighter jets and commercia…
> The examples you gave take no more than 30 seconds. Sure, FADEC can eliminate most of them, but they're quick.
Sure. Maybe I shouldn't have picked the engine section as the example.
In the context of this thread, way more than that is needed.
> Put another way, the latest fighter jets and commercial heavies still have significant visual preflights.
And that is fine. The stakes are high, the plane itself is much more complex and placed in high demand, plus they can hire staff.
Re: Larry Page’s startups working on flying cars
#136Helicopters and small planes already exist. We might have autonomous helicopters and small planes in the future, but flying car concept is flawed and not because it's hard to build one. - Preflight checks and flight safety. Larry should first build normal small aircraft that can do without constant manual checks before flight. This is actually good subgoal to work with even without flying cars in mind. Reliable infra…
You forgot the big one: Most small aircraft cannot fly in bad weather. If it's raining, windy, or even cloudy these things are going to be grounded if the pilot doesn't have an instrument rating.
Re: Larry Page’s startups working on flying cars
#137Helicopters and small planes already exist. We might have autonomous helicopters and small planes in the future, but flying car concept is flawed and not because it's hard to build one. - Preflight checks and flight safety. Larry should first build normal small aircraft that can do without constant manual checks before flight. This is actually good subgoal to work with even without flying cars in mind. Reliable infra…
You forgot the big one: Most small aircraft cannot fly in bad weather. If it's raining, windy, or even cloudy these things are going to be grounded if the pilot doesn't have an instrument rating.
Not to mention icing conditions!
Re: Larry Page’s startups working on flying cars
#138Helicopters and small planes already exist. We might have autonomous helicopters and small planes in the future, but flying car concept is flawed and not because it's hard to build one. - Preflight checks and flight safety. Larry should first build normal small aircraft that can do without constant manual checks before flight. This is actually good subgoal to work with even without flying cars in mind. Reliable infra…
Flying cars, of course, are ridiculous.
Best sentence in the article.
Re: Larry Page’s startups working on flying cars
#139Earlier quoted context omitted.
>>In the meantime try to get new helicopter landing sites approved in your neighborhood. Which takes us right back to the noise issue which needs to be solved, first. 'Till then, no way. Helicopters (nicknamed 'choppers' for good reason) buzzing over neighborhoods aren't exactly the average homeowner's dream. The "whapwhapwhapwhap" of a helicopter overhead, reverberating through a home, is just as desirable as open-p…
I don't think cities have the ability to regulate helicopters. Airspace is regulated by the FAA, which pre-empts the states from regulating them further. I remember reading an article about some city where helicopter noise had become a problem and they couldn't do much about it. Although I suppose with enough complaints the FAA might change their rules.
Airspace is regulated federally in most countries, but what you can build on the ground is almost always local in regulation.
You might be allowed to fly overhead without he city being able to do much about it, but you won't be able to land or take off.
(And to be honest, if the city complains to the federal regulators regarding noise, they almost always listen - almost every airport in a town has strict noise-reducing approach patterns for this reason already.)
Re: Larry Page’s startups working on flying cars
#140Helicopters and small planes already exist. We might have autonomous helicopters and small planes in the future, but flying car concept is flawed and not because it's hard to build one. - Preflight checks and flight safety. Larry should first build normal small aircraft that can do without constant manual checks before flight. This is actually good subgoal to work with even without flying cars in mind. Reliable infra…
They could do some kind of drone and do all the safety checks regularly before dispatching them, perhaps. Then the people doing the checks only need to be at the site. Maybe also allow remote control that can take over in emergencies and keep a few pilots around for that.
That said, convenient landing spots may not exist for many trips, so I have no idea what a good use case would be for this kind of thing.