{"id":7265,"date":"2018-05-14T15:32:47","date_gmt":"2018-05-14T14:32:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/engineernewsnetwork.com\/blog\/?p=7265"},"modified":"2018-05-14T15:32:47","modified_gmt":"2018-05-14T14:32:47","slug":"bio-inspired-robots","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.engineernewsnetwork.com\/blog\/bio-inspired-robots\/","title":{"rendered":"Bio-inspired robots"},"content":{"rendered":"<span class=\"highlight highlight-blue\"><a href=\"https:\/\/engineernewsnetwork.com\/blog\/festo-introduces-new-one-day-seminar-on-basics-of-industry-4-0\/\">Festo<\/a><\/span>, the supplier of automation equipment, has unveiled two new lightweight robotic concepts, inspired by nature.<\/p>\n<p>The <span class=\"highlight highlight-blue\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.festo.com\/bionics\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">BionicWheelBot and BionicFlyingFox<\/a><\/span> are this year\u2019s creations from the company\u2019s Bionic Learning Network, where Festo\u2019s experts looked at the motion of spiders and bats to navigate complex situations \u2014 from crossing rocky terrain to learning efficient flight paths.<br \/>\n<script async src=\"\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js\"><\/script><br \/>\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\" style=\"display: block; text-align: center;\" data-ad-layout=\"in-article\" data-ad-format=\"fluid\" data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-7565662001938327\" data-ad-slot=\"7585079586\"><\/ins><br \/>\n<script>\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\n<\/script><br \/>\nBionicWheelBot robot is based on the flic-flac spider, which lives in the Sahara and escapes predators with cartwheels and flips.<\/p>\n<p>Bionics professor Ingo Rechenberg, who discovered the spider, was involved in helping to design Festo\u2019s version, whereby its intricate motion has been transferred to kinematics and drive technology.<\/p>\n<p>It has eight legs which are controlled by 15 motors within the knee joints and body.<\/p>\n<p>When it rolls, it does a somersault with its whole body, tucking in six of the legs and using the remaining two to push off the ground with every rotation.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Integrated inertial sensor<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Thanks to an integrated inertial sensor, the robot knows its position and when to push while rolling.<\/p>\n<p>Festo has also created BionicFlyingFox based on the movement of world\u2019s largest bat.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/engineernewsnetwork.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/BionicWheelBot_1.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-7267 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/engineernewsnetwork.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/BionicWheelBot_1-1024x739.jpg\" alt=\"Bio-inspired robots\" width=\"618\" height=\"446\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.engineernewsnetwork.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/BionicWheelBot_1-1024x739.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.engineernewsnetwork.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/BionicWheelBot_1-300x217.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.engineernewsnetwork.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/BionicWheelBot_1-768x554.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.engineernewsnetwork.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/BionicWheelBot_1-800x577.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.engineernewsnetwork.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/BionicWheelBot_1.jpg 1772w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 618px) 100vw, 618px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>This project required some out-of-the-box thinking when it came to creating the wings: \u201cThe model\u2019s flying membrane is wafer-thin and ultralight but also robust,\u201d explains Steve Sands, <span class=\"highlight highlight-blue\"><a href=\"https:\/\/engineernewsnetwork.com\/blog\/practical-tips-for-industry-4-0-implementation\/\">Festo<\/a><\/span>. \u201cIt consists of two airtight films and a knitted elastane fabric, which are welded together at approximately 45,000 points.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_7268\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-7268\" style=\"width: 618px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/engineernewsnetwork.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/BionicWheelBot_2.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-7268\" src=\"https:\/\/engineernewsnetwork.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/BionicWheelBot_2-1024x739.jpg\" alt=\"Bio-inspired robots\" width=\"618\" height=\"446\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.engineernewsnetwork.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/BionicWheelBot_2-1024x739.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.engineernewsnetwork.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/BionicWheelBot_2-300x217.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.engineernewsnetwork.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/BionicWheelBot_2-768x554.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.engineernewsnetwork.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/BionicWheelBot_2-800x577.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.engineernewsnetwork.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/BionicWheelBot_2.jpg 1772w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 618px) 100vw, 618px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-7268\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">In rolling mode with extended propelling legs<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cDue to its elasticity, it stays almost uncreased, even when the wings are retracted. The fabric\u2019s honeycomb structure prevents small cracks in the flying membrane from getting bigger. This means that the BionicFlyingFox can continue flying even if the fabric sustains minor damage.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The flying fox can move semi-autonomously in a defined space by communicating with a motion-tracking system that constantly records its position.<\/p>\n<p>Images from a camera go to a computer which evaluates the data and coordinates the bat\u2019s flight.<\/p>\n<p>Its wing movements are calculated using on-board electronics, with a 9g brushless DC motor driving the flapping of the wings via a rack-and-pinion gear system.<\/p>\n<p>Take-off and landing are controlled by a human operator.<\/p>\n<p>Festo initiated the Bionic Learning Network, which is closely linked with the processes of innovation within the company, over ten years ago.<\/p>\n<p>In co-operation with students, renowned universities, institutes and development companies, Festo sponsors projects, testbeds and technology platforms.<\/p>\n<p>The objective is to benefit from bionics as a source of inspiration for new technologies and to realise these in industrial automation.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Festo, the supplier of automation equipment, has unveiled two new lightweight robotic concepts, inspired by nature. The BionicWheelBot and BionicFlyingFox are this year\u2019s creations from the company\u2019s Bionic Learning Network, where Festo\u2019s experts looked at the motion of spiders and bats to navigate complex situations \u2014 from crossing rocky terrain to learning efficient flight paths. &hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7266,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[105],"tags":[4147,4146,4145,2018,226,52],"class_list":["post-7265","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","","category-design","tag-bionic-learning-network","tag-bionicflyingfox","tag-bionicwheelbot","tag-festo","tag-robotics","tag-robots"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Bio-inspired robots - Engineer News Network<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.engineernewsnetwork.com\/blog\/bio-inspired-robots\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Bio-inspired robots - Engineer News Network\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Festo, the supplier of automation equipment, has unveiled two new lightweight robotic concepts, inspired by nature. 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