The future of aircrafts may be powered by cell batteries - a cleaner and more convenient source of energy compared to our conventional gasoline.
Tokyo Institute of Technology, known for its experiments with human-powered planes, and Matsushita, who provided the batteries, launched a joint project to develop the battery-powered vehicle in January 2006.
The consumer electronics giant, known for its Panasonic brand, teamed up with the Tokyo Institute of Technology to fly the plane with 160 of its commercially sold Oxyride AA batteries, commonly used in portable CD players and cameras. The Oxyride battery is a long-lasting battery said to be 1.5 times as powerful as a regular alkaline battery.
The manned airplane flew at a maximum altitude of 6.11 meters (about 20 feet) on the outskirts of Tokyo last weekend. It stayed aloft for 391.4 meters, besting the distance of the first powered flight in 1903 by the Wright Brothers with a gasoline engine.
The experimental plane requires about 300 W of power to fly. Its wingspan is 31 meters (about 101 feet) and weighs 54 kg (119 pounds). A student pilot weighed 53 kg (about 117 pounds). Each AA battery weighed 23 grams (about 0.8 oz.). With the pilot on board, the total weight on the flight was 107 kilograms. The plane took off and landed under its own power in almost windless conditions.
“I was careful at take-off as it was very difficult,” said pilot Tomohiro Kamiya, a senior member at the Tokyo Institute of Technology. He added: “As it soared 5m, people on the ground looked so small to me. I did not expect it to take off so beautifully.” Kamiya weighs 53 kilograms (117 pounds), almost as much as the plane itself.
The flight was a Japanese record, and the research team said it is seeking official recognition from the Federation Aeronautique Internationale as the world’s first manned flight powered by dry cell batteries.
Would this signify the new age of battery-powered vehicles using pollution-free Oxyride batteries? Will petrol stations be replaced with battery kiosks?