The Flying Car Will Become A Reality 飛行汽車(chē)即將成真

A Japanese startup called SkyDrive has begun conducting test flights of their prototype flying car with a human pilot.

The company hopes to be able to make a full public demonstration of the vehicle later this summer.

The test flights are being conducted at a protected indoor facility at the companys research flight center outside of Nagoya.

There have been a number of previous test flights， but they were all conducted via remote control and no human pilot on board.

According to a report in The Asahi Shimbun， SkyDrive says the car could be ready for a limited retail release as early as 2023， and mass production by 2026.

SkyDrive was founded by former engineers from Toyota and they hope their vehicle to be “the worlds smallest flying car”.

In 2017， Toyota gave the company an infusion of around $350，000 to help develop flying vehicles.

The company said it wont say more about how the test flights have been proceeding， but says things are going well enough to continue conducting test flights.

While concept renders of the flying car present a glossy and slim cabin with four horizontal drone-style propellers at each corner， the testing vehicle looks more like a go kart.

The prototype is around 5 feet tall thanks to the roll bar and a little less than 12 feet long and 12 feet wide.

The company hopes the flying vehicles could help ease traffic congestion， especially in busy megalopolises like Tokyo.

SkyDrive also believe flying vehicles could be helpful in search and rescue missions， and during emergencies where conventional infrastructure becomes unusable.

The company is targeting top speeds of 62mph while in the air and 93mph while closer to the ground.

The company says the vehicle will be able to travel as low as three feet off the ground.

日本一家名為“天空駕駛”的初創(chuàng)公司已開(kāi)始對(duì)其飛行汽車(chē)原型進(jìn)行試飛，試飛時(shí)有一名駕駛員在車(chē)內(nèi)。

該公司希望能在今年夏天對(duì)這款車(chē)進(jìn)行全方位的公開(kāi)展示。

試飛是在該公司位于名古屋郊外的飛行研究中心的一個(gè)受保護(hù)的室內(nèi)設(shè)施中進(jìn)行的。

該公司之前已進(jìn)行過(guò)數(shù)次試飛，但都是通過(guò)遙控進(jìn)行，無(wú)人駕駛。

據(jù)《朝日新聞》報(bào)道，該公司表示，這款車(chē)最早將于2023年開(kāi)始限量出售，2026年開(kāi)始量產(chǎn)。

這家公司由日本豐田公司的前工程師創(chuàng)立，公司希望這款汽車(chē)成為“世界上最小的飛行汽車(chē)”。

2017年，豐田向該公司注資約35萬(wàn)美元，幫助研發(fā)飛行車(chē)輛。

該公司表示，不會(huì)透露更多有關(guān)試飛的進(jìn)展，但表示一切順利，試飛可以繼續(xù)進(jìn)行。

雖然按照概念描述，飛行汽車(chē)有光滑細(xì)長(zhǎng)的機(jī)艙，四個(gè)角上還各有一個(gè)水平的無(wú)人機(jī)風(fēng)格的螺旋槳，但測(cè)試車(chē)輛看起來(lái)更像一輛卡丁車(chē)。

由于有翻車(chē)保護(hù)桿，原型機(jī)大約5英尺高（約合1.5米），不到12英尺長(zhǎng)，12英尺寬。

該公司希望這款飛行車(chē)輛有助于緩解交通擁堵，特別是像東京這樣繁忙的大都市。

該公司還認(rèn)為，在搜救任務(wù)中，以及在常規(guī)基礎(chǔ)設(shè)施無(wú)法使用的緊急情況下，飛行交通工具可能會(huì)有所幫助。

該公司的目標(biāo)是飛行車(chē)輛在空中最高飛行時(shí)速達(dá)到62英里，接近地面時(shí)最高時(shí)速93英里。

該公司表示，這款車(chē)將能夠在離地三英尺的超低空行駛。

Word Study

prototype /'pro?t?ta?p/ n. 原型;雛形;最初形態(tài)

facility /f?'s?l?ti/ n. 設(shè)施;設(shè)備

What recreational facilities are available now？

infusion /?n'fju??n/ n. 注入;灌輸

propeller /pr?'pel?r/ n. 螺旋槳（飛機(jī)或輪船的推進(jìn)器）

infrastructure /'?nfr?str?kt??r/ n. 基礎(chǔ)設(shè)施;基礎(chǔ)建設(shè)