Flapping Robotic Wing Helps Biologists Uncover Secrets Of Bat Flight
Robat Wing A robotic bat wing lets researchers measure forces, joint movements, and flight parameters - and learn more about how the real thing operates in nature. Breuer and Swartz labs/Brown UniversityThis Robat is designed to work like a real fruit-bat wing. A new 3-D printed robotic bat wing can emulate the flapping motion of a real bat, helping biologists simulate how the mammals fly and helping aerodynamics researchers study new flapping-wing aircraft. In the process of building and modifying the robotic wing, researchers at Brown University stumbled upon some structural fixes that provide insight into how bat bodies evolved for flight. Bat wings are incredibly complex mechanisms, producing lift and thrust to help the flying mammals quickly chase their insect prey, fly long distances, and nimbly move through dense clouds of their compatriots. A bat's wings span almost its entire body, supported by two arm bones and five finger-like...