60-milligram Robotic Fly

Posted 20 Jul 2007 at 12:47 UTC by mwaibel

Researchers at Harvard University led by Robert Wood have created a life-size, robotic fly using a specially developed fabrication process. The robot's tiny wings are modeled on the flapping and rotation movements of a real fly and beat at 150 times a second, lifting the robot off the ground. The robot is a major breakthrough in mechanical design, however control and power supply for the robot are still unresolved. The current version relies on an external power source and is tethered. An article in the technology review links to two videos (wing takeoff, wing slow motion). More information and older videos can be found at Ron Fearing's homepage (he is Robert Wood's former PhD supervisor at the University of California, Berkeley) and at Berkley's media office. Details will be described in the upcoming issue of the Journal of Mechanical Design.

Ain't no flies on this robot, posted 21 Jul 2007 at 13:10 UTC by motters » (Master)

Those pesky robot flies! What we need now is a robotic fly swatter.