Micro spies

Technology has advanced enough to allow feasibility studies as well as demonstrations of capabilities with regard to extremely small aircraft and sensors. Initially, as might be expected, the applications are most likely to be military. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and the Department of Defense (DOD) are the two major funding agencies in this arena. Typically, the requirements for the micro aircraft have been size, weight, range, sturdiness, payload, and ease of use. Aspects of the construction of the aircraft in meeting these requirements are discussed. Another micro application, which could be called being a "pill sized spy", is in micro electro mechanical systems, or MEMS. The sensor node transmits data back to a "mother sensor" via a micro aircraft. One can also envision numerous civilian applications for micro aircraft.