The Flytech Dragonfly is WowWee's entry into remote-controlled

Radio control

Radio control is the use of radio signals to remotely control a device. The term is used frequently to refer to the control of model vehicles from a hand-held radio transmitter...

 flying toy industry. The Dragonfly has been incorrectly billed as the world's first commercially available RC ornithopter

Ornithopter

An ornithopter is an aircraft that flies by flapping its wings. Designers seek to imitate the flapping-wing flight of birds, bats, and insects. Though machines may differ in form, they are usually built on the same scale as these flying creatures. Manned ornithopters have also been built, and some...

 (flapping wing aircraft). It was actually preceded by several other products including Hobbytechnik's Skybird, Park Hawk, and Slow Hawk radio controlled ornithopters, and the Cybird radio-controlled ornithopter from Neuros. The Dragonfly is made from lightweight but strong materials and has a crash-resistant structure. It is rechargeable and has multiple modes for beginner and advanced users. The Dragonfly is not a robot like the majority of WowWee's current products, such as the Robosapien

RoboSapien

RoboSapien is a toy-like biomorphic robot designed by Mark Tilden and produced by WowWee toys. The RoboSapien is preprogrammed with moves, and also can be controlled by an infrared remote control included with the toy, or by either a personal computer equipped with an infrared transmitter, and an...

 and the Roboreptile

Roboreptile

The Roboreptile toy robot manufactured by WowWee Ltd. The Roboreptile has infrared and sound sensors, and is able to autonomously explore its environment while avoiding obstacles. It can also operate in different modes where it simultates behaviors of real animals. It is able to rear up on its hind...

. Replacement wings are available for purchase.

History

The Dragonfly was invented by Sean Frawley and Dan Getz who began experimenting with ornithopters while they were still teenagers. The four-winged design of the Dragonfly was based on a previous rubber-band-powered ornithopter kit designed by Nathan Chronister and manufactured by The Ornithopter Zone. The newly available micro-sized motors and batteries developed for cellular telephones made it possible to build an electric-powered, radio-controlled version. Mr. Frawley has since earned a degree in aerospace engineering

Aerospace engineering

Aerospace engineering is the primary branch of engineering concerned with the design, construction and science of aircraft and spacecraft. It is divided into two major and overlapping branches: aeronautical engineering and astronautical engineering...

 from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University is a private university in the US specializing in aviation and aerospace engineering. It teaches the science, practice, and business of aviation and aerospace. Called "The Harvard of the Sky" by Time Magazine in 1979, Embry-Riddle has a history dating back to...

 and now works for WowWee. The Dragonfly was first introduced at the January 2007 CES show in Las Vegas

Las Vegas, Nevada

Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...

, and was being sold in RadioShack

RadioShack

RadioShack Corporation   is an American franchise of electronics retail stores in the United States, as well as parts of Europe, South America and Africa. As of 2008, RadioShack reported net sales and operating revenues of $4.81 billion. The headquarters of RadioShack is located in Downtown...

 stores in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 in February 2007.

Hardware

The Dragonfly is made of lightweight materials that are strong and crash-resistant. Its gears and internal frame are made of Delrin. These parts, and its other internal electronics, are protected by a body molded from Expanded Polypropylene

Polypropylene

Polypropylene , also known as polypropene, is a thermoplastic polymer used in a wide variety of applications including packaging, textiles , stationery, plastic parts and reusable containers of various types, laboratory equipment, loudspeakers, automotive components, and polymer banknotes...

. Carbon fiber

Carbon fiber

Carbon fiber, alternatively graphite fiber, carbon graphite or CF, is a material consisting of fibers about 5–10 μm in diameter and composed mostly of carbon atoms. The carbon atoms are bonded together in crystals that are more or less aligned parallel to the long axis of the fiber...

 rods give the Dragonfly's wings strength, while Mylar film give them lift and thrust. At 25 grams, its very light nature makes it easily susceptible to gentle wind currents.

The Dragonfly operates for approximately 5 to 10 (rarely 15) minutes on a single charge of its lithium polymer battery. The Dragonfly recharges by plugging into its remote control unit, which itself requires 6 AA batteries

AA battery

An AA battery is a standard size of battery. Batteries of this size are the most commonly used type of in portable electronic devices. An AA battery is composed of a single electrochemical cell...

. Charging time is about 20 minutes.

Other versions

• FlyTech Dragonfly comes in multiple colors, blue and green are the most commercially available, while red/orange ones are less common.
• One version of the Dragonfly is designed to resemble Barry B. Benson from the 2007 DreamWorks
  DreamWorks
  DreamWorks Pictures, also known as DreamWorks, LLC, DreamWorks SKG, DreamWorks II Distribution Co., LLC, DreamWorks Studios or DW Studios, LLC, is an American film studio which develops, produces, and distributes films, video games and television programming...
  
   animated film Bee Movie
  Bee Movie
  Bee Movie is a 2007 computer animated family comedy film starring Jerry Seinfeld, Renée Zellweger, Matthew Broderick, Megan Mullally, John Goodman, Chris Rock, Kathy Bates, and Patrick Warburton. Produced by DreamWorks Animation, it is directed by Simon J...
  
  .
• Also in 2007, WowWee released a remote-controlled "Rex" from the ITV
  ITV
  ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
  
   sci-fi drama
  Drama
  Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
  
   series Primeval.

External links

• The Ornithopter Zone
• Ornithopter Technologies - Sean Frawley's original company
• FlyTech Dragonfly Home on RoboCommunity - The official WowWee Robotics user community
• Unofficial WowWee Hacks and Mods site
• UK info site about the Flytech Remote Control Dragonfly
• Video of Dragonfly flying filmed at half-speed - In reality it is a TWICE speed filmed ! so the playing appears half speed.
• Fan-site, photo gallery, forums and review with pictures of Dragonfly
• FCC filing: WowWee's FlyTech Dragonfly
• FCC filing: WowWee's Dragonfly controller
• Flytech Dragonfly Information page (plus YouTube video) its a big fly
• Gizmodo article from January 6, 2007
• Flytech Dragonfly Inventor Sean Frawley - a discussion of remarkable materials, painstaking development and that spark of inspiration.
• Review of the FlyTech Dragonfly by Craig Johnson of The LED Museum