Design of Bio-inspired Flexible Wings for Flapping-Wing Micro-sized Air Vehicle Applications

The unmatched performance of insect flight is a motivation for bio-inspired designs of synthetic wings that can undergo large deformations in flapping flight. In this paper, we experimentally study the aerodynamic performance of a bio-inspired flexible flapping wing, which has the static load–deformation characteristics of a hawkmoth (Manduca sexta) wing, and compare it with a similar geometry rigid wing. The bio-inspired wing is designed using finite element analysis, coupled with an optimization solver, to match the static load–deflection characteristics of the synthetic wing with that of real hawkmoth wings. A flexible synthetic wing is constructed using a combination of materials (carbon, nylon and rubber) for the veins and a latex membrane. The aerodynamic performance of the synthetic deformable wing is tested on a robotic flapper, using commonly observed kinematic templates of insect flapping (and rotation). Our results show increased thrust by the flexible wing for all kinematic patterns in comparison to the rigid wing. A host of important advantages provided by wing flexibility are mentioned in the context of flapping flight.