小柯机器人

俄罗斯莫斯科国立罗蒙诺索夫大学Alexey A. Polilov、Sergey E. Farisenkov等研究人员合作发现，新颖的飞行方式和轻盈的翅膀提升了小甲虫的飞行性能。相关论文于2022年1月19日在线发表在《自然》杂志上。

Author: Farisenkov, Sergey E., Kolomenskiy, Dmitry, Petrov, Pyotr N., Engels, Thomas, Lapina, Nadezhda A., Lehmann, Fritz-Olaf, Onishi, Ryo, Liu, Hao, Polilov, Alexey A.

Issue&Volume: 2022-01-19

Abstract: Flight speed is positively correlated with body size in animals1. However, miniature featherwing beetles can fly at speeds and accelerations of insects three times their size2. Here we show that this performance results from a reduced wing mass and a previously unknown type of wing-motion cycle. Our experiment combines three-dimensional reconstructions of morphology and kinematics in one of the smallest insects, the beetle Paratuposa placentis (body length 395 μm). The flapping bristled wings follow a pronounced figure-of-eight loop that consists of subperpendicular up and down strokes followed by claps at stroke reversals above and below the body. The elytra act as inertial brakes that prevent excessive body oscillation. Computational analyses suggest functional decomposition of the wingbeat cycle into two power half strokes, which produce a large upward force, and two down-dragging recovery half strokes. In contrast to heavier membranous wings, the motion of bristled wings of the same size requires little inertial power. Muscle mechanical power requirements thus remain positive throughout the wingbeat cycle, making elastic energy storage obsolete. These adaptations help to explain how extremely small insects have preserved good aerial performance during miniaturization, one of the factors of their evolutionary success.

DOI: 10.1038/s41586-021-04303-7

Source: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-021-04303-7

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