A bat type robot that can fly and drop rapidly, imitating the unique flight style of bats

Flying robots such as drone often refer to insects and birds, but imitate the flight style superior in flexibility and agility of bats and their wings, making it possible to fly and dive, "bats Type independent autonomous flying robot "has been developed.

A biomimetic robotic platform to study flight specializations of bats | Science Robotics
http://robotics.sciencemag.org/content/2/3/eaal2505

Bat-inspired robot swoops and dives like the real thing | New Scientist
https://www.newscientist.com/article/2120119-bat-inspired-robot-swoops-and-dives-like-the-real-thing/

A bat-type robot is being developed by a development team including Mr. Alireza Lamzani of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. There are 40 joints on the wing of the bat, but the wings of the bat type robot were designed with 9 joints because it becomes too huge when reproduced as it is. Although the flexibility is inferior to real bats, each wing can be moved in all directions, the joint part is made of lightweight carbon fiber, and an ultra-thin silicone film imitating bats of bats is attached to both wings I will.

By adopting the ultra-thin silicon film, the bat type robot can change the shape of the wing while maintaining the tension of the surface of the wing. It seems that other materials can not stretch well well when stuck on the skeleton. The total weight of the robot is only 93 g, a small motor which is power is mounted on the spine part, and a sensor for adjusting the position of the wing by calculating the angle of the joint is built in. Real bats are also thought to be equipped with sensor organs to sense air flow with wings.


In addition, you can see how the actually developed bat robot is flying from the following movie.

Bat-inspired robot swoops and dives like the real thing - YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5XDpBJDDu7M

The bat-flying object looks like a living bat, but this is a bat-type robot that imitated a complex body form of a bat.


From the place where it was flapping high in the sky, it has the ability to sky down towards the ground.


The bat has stretchy skin, so that it can deform the shape of the wing even during flight.


"Ultra-thin silicon film" developed following the bat's skin.


How to move wings is like a real bat.


It will not break even if you pencil it, you can see that it is a sturdy elastic material.


Bat type robots are expected to be used for exploration and monitoring of places such as nuclear reactors which are not discarded by humans. The drones that can be used for similar purposes still have the problem of "crash when subjected to strong winds", but since bat-type robots are unlikely to crash even if they receive the wind, the birth of a new generation of drone It is expected.