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Tiny Flying Insect Robot Has Four Wings and Weighs Under a Gram
New Scientist [newscientist.com]:
A solar-powered flying robot has become the lightest machine capable of flying without an attached power source.
Weighing just 259 milligrams, the insect-inspired RoboBee X-Wing has four wings [newscientist.com] that flap at a rate of 170 times per second. It has a wingspan of 3.5 centimetres and is 6.5 cemtimetres high.
The flying robot [newscientist.com] was developed by Noah Jafferis and colleagues at Harvard University.
Its wings are controlled by two muscle-like plates that contract when voltage passes through them. They are powered by six tiny solar cells weighing 10 milligrams each, which are located above the wings so as not to interfere with flight.
I, for one, welcome our flying robot overlords.
You will obey or molten silver will be poured into your ears.
