A Twist of the Tail Inspires New Bird Drones #drone #droneday
Engineers at École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) have designed a new drone heavily inspired by a raptor. This drone has feathers and features a morphing tail for controlled banking.
Intrigued by the difference between the way human-built craft and raptors conduct banks, the pair designed and built a feathered, mechanical raptor capable of mimicking the technique of a hawk.
To build their drone, the researchers turned to the anatomy of the hawk. Using light materials, they created raptor-like bones and joints to make the wings and tail and fashioned them onto an equally light body and then covered them with foam feathers. The simple drone was held aloft by the attachment of a rod to the body—the other end of the rod was held in a researchers’ hand. They called the result LisRaptor.
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