Research teams from Tampere University in Finland and the University of Pittsburgh in the United States have designed a miniature robot that emulates the aerial dance of falling maple seeds. This new technology holds promise for future applications in real-time environmental monitoring and small sample delivery in locations otherwise inaccessible, such as deserts, mountains, cliffs, or open seas, making it a potential game-changer for fields such as search-and-rescue operations, endangered species studies, and infrastructure monitoring.
The researchers, Professor Hao Zeng and Doctoral Researcher Jianfeng Yang from Tampere University, alongside Professor M. Ravi Shankar from the University of Pittsburgh, have merged insights from physics, soft mechanics, and material engineering to create robotic light-controllable gliding structures.
Using a light-activated smart material, the team managed to control an artificial maple seed's gliding course. In nature, the unique wing configuration of maple seeds allows them to rotate during the fall, hence enabling them to glide even in a gentle breeze. The artificial version of these seeds can be actively controlled by light to adjust their wind dispersal pattern and attain a variety of gliding trajectories.
Additionally, these artificial maple seeds could be fitted with microsensors for environmental monitoring purposes or to deliver small soil samples. Unlike their natural counterparts, the artificial seeds demonstrate increased adjustability in terminal velocity, rotation rate, and hovering positions, enhancing wind-assisted distant travel through self-rotation.
This project, known as Flying Aero-robots based on Light Responsive Materials Assembly (FAIRY), was initiated by Zeng and Yang, who released their first mini-robot, modelled after a dandelion seed, in early 2023. Funded by the Research Council of Finland, the project runs from September 2021 until August 2026.
Professor Ravi Shankar from the University of Pittsburgh highlights the potential of photosensitive materials in crafting micro robots, drones, and probes. Coupled with the templates provided by nature, these tools can reach otherwise inaccessible areas and relay crucial information back to users in real time.
More than just devices of convenience, these innovative tools take inspiration from the effortless functionality of nature to provide potentially transformative breakthroughs in several fields. Their soaring elegance through the skies, light-controlled and mesmerizing as they glide with the wind, marks an exciting point of departure in the sphere of AI-driven utility tools.
Disclaimer: The above article was written with the assistance of AI. The original sources can be found on ScienceDaily.
