Meeting Abstract

P1.120  Tuesday, Jan. 4  A biomimetic flapping machine that models asynchronous flight-muscle activation in insects KUMAR MANIKKAM, D; BERG, O; MULLER, UK*; California State University Fresno; California State University Fresno; California State University Fresno umuller@csufresno.edu

We have designed a flapping mechanism by analogy to the asynchronous flight muscles found in insects of the higher Neoptera. The wing strokes of beetles, flies, and wasps and bees are not individually triggered by nerve impulses; rather, delayed stretch-activation allows the flight muscle to oscillate spontaneously when coupled to a resonant load. Our model is driven by a solenoidal linear actuator, which intrinsically mimics the force vs extension properties of muscle. Current to the solenoid is controlled by the output of a Hall-effect position sensor. When this feedback is delayed with respect to the instantaneous actuator position, sustained oscillation is indeed observed. We have tested the effects of feedback delay, restoring force, and wing loading on the flapping frequency, amplitude, and power dissipation of a model wing. While the prototype is not suitable for flight, it is a flexible test bed for the investigation of distributed (vs central) control of flapping motion for electro-mechanical robots. As in insects, the absence of a separate ‘function generator’ to define the flapping kinematics is advantageous when simplicity, speed, and autonomy of the control system are key.