Dynamics and flight control of a flapping-wing robotic insect in the presence of wind gusts

With the goal of operating a biologically inspired robot autonomously outside of laboratory conditions, in this paper, we simulated wind disturbances in a laboratory setting and investigated the effects of gusts on the flight dynamics of a millimetre-scale flapping-wing robot. Simplified models describing the disturbance effects on the robot's dynamics are proposed, together with two disturbance rejection schemes capable of estimating and compensating for the disturbances. The proposed methods are experimentally verified. The results show that these strategies reduced the root-mean-square position errors by more than 50% when the robot was subject to 80 cm s −1 horizontal wind. The analysis of flight data suggests that modulation of wing kinematics to stabilize the flight in the presence of wind gusts may indirectly contribute an additional stabilizing effect, reducing the time-averaged aerodynamic drag experienced by the robot. A benchtop experiment was performed to provide further support for this observed phenomenon.

Engineering the locusts: Hind leg modelling towards the design of a bio-inspired space hopper

The mechanical operation of a biologically inspired robot hopper is presented. This design is based on the hind leg dynamics and jumping gait of a desert locust ( Schistocerca gregaria). The biological mechanism is represented as a lumped mass system. This emulates the muscle activation sequence and gait responsible for the long, coordinated jump of locusts, whilst providing an engineering equivalent for the design of a biological inspired hopper for planetary exploration. Despite the crude simplification, performance compares well against biological data found in the literature and scaling towards size more typical of robotic realisation are considered from an engineering point of view. This aspect makes an important contribution to knowledge as it quantifies the balance between biological similarity and efficiency of the biomimetic hopping mechanism. Further, this work provides useful information towards the biomimetic design of a hopper vehicle whilst the analysis uncover the range maximisation conditions for powered flight at constant thrust by analytic means. The proposed design bridges concepts looking at the gait dynamics and designs oriented to extended, full powered trajectories.

Estimating the Power Requirement of a Design of Fish Robot Based on Teleost Specie of Fish - Mackerel

The energy required to propel a biologically inspired robot in the form of a fish (mackerel) model using rubber (as the biomimetic material) for its joints is presented in this paper. It was found that the design will need approximately 0.81W of energy to handle the maximum dynamic torque of 0.0592850Nm that will be generated when using Futaba S3003 remote control servo motor to drive the peduncle. The fish robot designed was tested by making it to swim in a stationary body of water. It was found to be capable of swimming for about 30minutes compare to the calculated 2.7hrs hours using 4 built in 900mAh Li-Po battery (connected in parallel) while cruising at the speed of 0.985m/s.