Li Yiming, Li Keyu, Fu Fang, Li Yao, Li Bing
Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Intelligent Morphing Mechanisms and Adaptive Robots, Harbin Institute of Technology, Shenzhen 518055, China.
Key University Laboratory of Mechanism & Machine Theory and Intelligent Unmanned Systems of Guangdong, Harbin Institute of Technology, Shenzhen 518055, China.
Biomimetics (Basel). 2024 Mar 18;9(3):183. doi: 10.3390/biomimetics9030183.
Insects produce a variety of highly acrobatic maneuvers in flight owing to their ability to achieve various wing-stroke trajectories. Among them, beetles can quickly change their flight velocities and make agile turns. In this work, we report a newly discovered phasic wing-tip-folding phenomenon and its aerodynamic basis in beetles. The wings' flapping trajectories and aerodynamic forces of the tethered flying beetles were recorded simultaneously via motion capture cameras and a force sensor, respectively. The results verified that phasic active spanwise-folding and deployment (PASFD) can exist during flapping flight. The folding of the wing-tips of beetles significantly decreased aerodynamic forces without any changes in flapping frequency. Specifically, compared with no-folding-and-deployment wings, the lift and forward thrust generated by bilateral-folding-and-deployment wings reduced by 52.2% and 63.0%, respectively. Moreover, unilateral-folding-and-deployment flapping flight was found, which produced a lateral force (8.65 mN). Therefore, a micro-flapping-wing mechanism with PASFD was then designed, fabricated, and tested in a motion capture and force measurement system to validate its phasic folding functions and aerodynamic performance under different operating frequencies. The results successfully demonstrated a significant decrease in flight forces. This work provides valuable insights for the development of flapping-wing micro-air-vehicles with high maneuverability.
昆虫能够实现各种翼型轨迹，从而在飞行中做出各种高难度的飞行动作。其中，甲虫能够快速改变飞行速度并灵活转向。在这项研究中，我们报告了一种新发现的甲虫阶段性翼尖折叠现象及其空气动力学原理。通过运动捕捉相机和力传感器，分别同步记录了系留飞行甲虫的翅膀拍动轨迹和空气动力。结果证实，在拍动飞行过程中可能存在阶段性主动展向折叠和展开（PASFD）。甲虫翼尖的折叠显著降低了空气动力，而拍动频率没有任何变化。具体而言，与不折叠和展开的翅膀相比，双侧折叠和展开的翅膀产生的升力和向前推力分别降低了52.2%和63.0%。此外，还发现了单侧折叠和展开的拍动飞行，它产生了一个侧向力（8.65毫牛）。因此，设计、制造了一种具有PASFD的微型扑翼机构，并在运动捕捉和力测量系统中进行了测试，以验证其在不同工作频率下的阶段性折叠功能和空气动力学性能。结果成功地证明了飞行力的显著降低。这项工作为开发具有高机动性的扑翼微型飞行器提供了有价值的见解。
