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It can fit in a pocket, yet is nimble enough to fly through windows and even through tunnels deep underground.

Researchers have unveiled a radical new spy drone they say could revolutionise search and rescue.

The US Air Force has even backed the project, hoping to use the drone to look for IEDs and for surveillance mission.

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The Pocket Flyer will carry a panoramic camera that provides both a 360-degree view from the drone.

HOW IT WORKS

The tiny hexacopter, which measures about seven inches across when fully configured.

The drone uses six rotors to keep it airborne.

It has a 360 degree panoramic camera, and can operate when out of radio contact with operators.

CyPhy Works, a Danvers, Massachusetts-based startup led by CEO (and iRobot co-founder) Helen Greiner will build the drone.

The Pocket Flyer will carry a panoramic camera that provides both a 360-degree view from the drone. 

The tiny hexacopter, which measures about seven inches across when fully configured, will initially be used in search and rescue operations in collapsed buildings, tunnels, and other confined spaces and steep grades that may be difficult for crawling robots to negotiate.

'Just like a camera, the best drone is the one you have with you,' Greiner said.

'The market potential is one for every soldier, marine, police officer, SWAT team member, and many other jobs that expose people to danger.' 

It will also provide a way to search for improvised explosive devices and conduct surveillance of tunnels and other spaces without the use of radio frequency controls. 

Funded under the Rapid Innovation Fund, Extreme Access Pocket Flyer will address an existing capability gap in the remote inspection of small passageways and tunnels that are often – blocked by debris and rubble. 

The drone uses six rotors to keep it airborne. It has a 360 degree panoramic camera, and can operate when out of radio contact with operators.

Under this new project, CyPhy Works will design and test Extreme Access Pocket Flyer, a compact, highly versatile drone that can be quickly deployed for remote inspection of collapsed structures. 

The current approach used by search and rescue operations relies on costly ground robots that can be limited by ground obstacles and steep terrain. 

Target users communities will include Pararescue, Special Forces and FEMA. 

Extreme Access Pocket Flyer will also be used as an airborne in-tunnel surveillance system, the firm said.

'Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs), frequently placed in tunnels and culverts, are the predominant threat to our military forces' said Matt England, LTC and CyPhy Works Vice President of Government Systems. 

'Imagine not having to get out of the protection of your armored vehicle and being able to closely inspect suspicious areas in a fraction of the time it currently takes. 

'That's what Extreme Access Pocket Flyer will enable.

'Extreme Access Pocket Flyer makes use of CyPhy Work's proprietary microfilament technology to solve the mission life and non-line-of-site telemetry issues. 

'A free flying vehicle this size would last less than twenty minutes and would lose communications when entering a building. 

'By contrast, the Extreme Access Pocket Flyer will stay aloft as long as power is supplied from the ground and its batteries will be hot swappable.