Science Daily September 13, 2023 Researchers at the University of Washington designed origami battery-free microfliers using bistable leaf-out structures and found that a simple change in the shape of the origami structures caused two dramatically different falling behaviors. When unfolded and flat, the microfliers exhibited a tumbling behavior that increased lateral displacement in the wind. When folded inward, their orientation was stabilized, resulting in a downward descent that was less influenced by wind. To electronically transition between these two shapes, they designed a low-power electromagnetic actuator that produced peak forces of up to 200 millinewtons within 25 milliseconds while powered […]
Tag Archives: Microfliers
Winged microchip is smallest-ever human-made flying structure
Science Daily September 22, 2021 An international team of researchers (South Korea, UK, USA – Northwestern University, University of Wisconsin, University of Connecticut, University of Illinois, University of Purdue, China, Hong Kong) studied wind-dispersed seeds to build microfliers and optimized its aerodynamics to ensure that it falls at a slow velocity in a controlled manner. They fabricated precursors to flying structures in flat, planar geometries and bonded them onto a slightly stretched rubber substrate. When the stretched substrate is relaxed, a controlled buckling process occurred causing the wings to “pop up” into precisely defined three-dimensional forms. It included sensors, a […]