MIT has been working on the problem of autonomous vehicle swarms engaged in long-term, 24/7 missions. An MIT news release describes their latest results using multiple Quadrotor UAVs. Each robot is described as being "a little smaller than a seagull". (the article does not make clear why seagulls are consider an ideal measure of robot scale). The robots are based on "off-the-shelf gadgets" which look suspisously like the radio control draganflyer. Each of the UAVs is networked to a PC allowing an operator to command the swarm while letting each robot take care of the technical details of takeoffs, landings, and flying. The swarm also includes moving ground vehicles. In one experiment, one of the quadrotor UAVs successfully landed on a moving ground vehicle. The "health" of the swarm is also monitored. New robots are instantly launched to replace those that are lost or grounded. Potential applications include surveillance or search and rescue operations. For more photos and information see the MIT UAV SWARM Health Management Project.