HARVARD MICROROBOTICS LAB DEVELOPS FIRST INSECT-SIZE ROBOT CAPABLE OF FLYING AND SWIMMING
In 1939, a Russian engineer proposed a “flying submarine” — a vehicle that can seamlessly transition from air to water and back again. While it may sound like something out of a James Bond film, engineers have been trying to design functional aerial-aquatic vehicles for decades with little success. Now, engineers may be one step closer to the elusive flying submarine.
The biggest challenge is conflicting design requirements: aerial vehicles require large airfoils like wings or sails to generate lift while underwater vehicles need to minimize surface area to reduce drag.
To solve this engineers at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Science (SEAS) took a clue from puffins. The birds with flamboyant beaks are one of nature’s most adept hybrid vehicles, employing similar flapping motions to propel themselves through air as through water.
“Through various theoretical, computational and experimental studies, we found that the mechanics of flapping propulsion are actually very similar in air and in water,” said Kevin Chen, a graduate student in the Harvard Microrobotics Lab at SEAS. “In both cases, the wing is moving back and forth. The only difference is the speed at which the wing flaps.”
Coming from the Harvard Microrobotics Lab, this discovery can only mean one thing: swimming RoboBees.
For the first time, researchers at SEAS have demonstrated a flying, swimming, insect-like robot — paving the way for future duel aerial aquatic robotic vehicles.
Read more: Dive of the RoboBee
The Latest on: Insect-like robot
[google_news title=”” keyword=”insect-like robot” num_posts=”10″ blurb_length=”0″ show_thumb=”left”]
via Google News
The Latest on: Insect-like robot
- Swarms of miniscule drones mimicking insects being tried for dangerous human taskson August 1, 2024 at 4:03 am
"We want to instill the same capabilities also in robots," De Croon said. Doing this, the scientists look at how birds or insects swarm "using very simple behaviors." For instance, birds "look at ...
- Caltech’s damaged robot adapts to swim like injured fish with AI poweron August 1, 2024 at 3:44 am
investigates how robotic systems can adapt their propulsion mechanisms in response to damage, drawing inspiration from how fish and insects adjust their movement when injured. Animals like fish and ...
- Beetle mania: How bugs are inspiring the next gen of robot aviatorson August 1, 2024 at 2:30 am
Deploying and folding wings without power might be useful in a tight spot The rhinoceros beetle turns out to be an unlikely source of engineering inspiration for tiny flying robots that can fold their ...
- Self-sustaining water bug-like aquatic robot devised to boost ocean IoTon July 30, 2024 at 9:03 am
Inspired by biological digestion, an advanced tiny aquatic robot was designed and equipped with a self-sustained energy system.
- RAW VIDEO: Insects Show Next Generation Of Tiny Robots How To Get Around 6/7on July 26, 2024 at 11:34 am
Credit: TU Delft/Studio Oostrum/Tom van Dijk/Christophe de Wagter/Cover Images Scientists believe insects could hold the key to a world where futuristic mini-robots can complete important tasks.
- Insects Show Next Generation Of Tiny Robots How To Get Aroundon July 26, 2024 at 8:15 am
Insects Show Next Generation Of Tiny Robots How To Get Around. Scientists believe insects could hold the key to a world where futuristic mini-robots can complete important tasks. Imagine tiny robots, ...
- RAW VIDEO: Insects Show Next Generation Of Tiny Robots How To Get Around 3/7on July 26, 2024 at 2:06 am
Both are impractical for small robots, while external navigational systems like GPS aren’t reliable ... University of Technology are now looking insects, whose navigation methods offer a ...
- RAW VIDEO: Insects Show Next Generation Of Tiny Robots How To Get Around 6/7on July 25, 2024 at 5:00 pm
Both are impractical for small robots, while external navigational systems like GPS aren’t reliable ... University of Technology are now looking insects, whose navigation methods offer a ...
- RAW VIDEO: Insects Show Next Generation Of Tiny Robots How To Get Around 7/7on July 25, 2024 at 5:00 pm
Both are impractical for small robots, while external navigational systems like GPS aren’t reliable ... University of Technology are now looking insects, whose navigation methods offer a ...
via Bing News
