Skytech Dragonfly Shows Innovation Can Come from Very Old Ideas

There's a common misconception that innovation means coming up with new ideas. In fact, innovation can come from very old ideas. One common way to innovate is by combining ideas from different fields, such as, say, biology and robotics. My wife just showed me a video of the new Flytech Dragonfly, and I was completely blown away, as anyone who has even a modest understanding of aerodynamics will undoubtedly be also.

The thing is, dragonflies have been around for hundreds of millions of years. When Da Vinci dreamed up his ideas for flying machines, he didn't think of propellers and jets -- he drew his inspiration from the natural world -- birds and insects. And now, 500 years later, we are just now getting to the point of having a mass-produced, fully functional "ornithopter". A couple of other remote control ornithopters are currently on the market, but the Flytech Dragonfly is a) the first dual-wing design - like a dragonfly rather than a bird, and b) the first at an under $50 price point -- other R/C ornithopters go for well over $100.

So the next time you're looking for an innovative idea, instead of racking your brain trying to think of something new, you might do well to spend some time looking through something very old - maybe something that once was thought impossible or at least impractical may now be a source of innovation or at least inspiration.

Related on About.com:

• Creating Creativity and Innovation - A collection of articles and resources on creative thinking and critical thinking from our Inventors Guide Mary Bellis