The RoboBee, created by Harvard University researchers, has just been upgraded with precision flight technology. What does this mean? This tiny robotic insect now has precision control over its heading and lateral movement, allowing it to easily hover as well as pivot better in mid-air, just like its real-life counterpart, the bumblebee. A real world use case scenario would be exploring sensitive or dangerous areas in swarms.
RoboBees are classified as flapping-wing micro-aerial vehicles (FWMAVs) as they are required to balance the upstroke as well as ownstroke speeds within a single fast-flapping cycle to generate the desired yaw torque to turn the body. This also makes achieving precision control with these flapping-winged robots very tricky.
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One particularly exciting area is in assisted agriculture, as we look ahead towards applying these vehicles in tasks such as pollination, attempting to achieve the feats of biological insects and birds,” said Rebecca McGill, a Ph.D. candidate in materials science and mechanical engineering at Harvard.
