昆虫の筋骨格系を規範とした飛行ロボット用小型柔軟羽ばたき機構の創製

抄録

In nature, flying animals such as insects display great flight performances with high stability and maneuverability even under the unpredictable disturbances in the wake of the buildings or vegetation. Unlike man-made mechanical systems like drones, insects achieve flapping wing motion by their flexible musculoskeletal system. In this study, flexible flapping mechanisms were fabricated, and the effect of flexibility on the gust response was evaluated experimentally. It was found that, while the flexibility in the mechanism can enhance the efficiency but reduces the stability, the wing flexibility can enhance the stability under the gust by the passive wing deformation. Therefore, by the combinations of appropriate flexibility, it is possible to enhance the robustness against the gust while enhancing the efficiency of flapping wings. Based on the findings, small-scale flapping mechanism for insect-sized flapping wing drone was designed and fabricated with torsion springs and flexible hinges.