The wings of hummingbirds and owls are the inspiration for the development of drones
These innovations are so amazing that we have to study them in order to implement their designs in everyday life.
Consider, for instance, the precise and swift movement of a Hummingbird. It has allowed us to develop flying machines that are capable of complex maneuvers. Or, an owl’s sly flight which has inspired the design of quite effective wind turbines. In both instances, biomimicry draws inspiration from nature-inspired inventions to create and enhance our existing technology.
Precise maneuvers
Hummingbirds are among the tiniest bird species around the globe. They are small and light bodies with large wings that let them fly extremely fast and with amazing accuracy. Many species of birds are equipped with large wings and a wide range of feathers, so what makes hummingbirds apart in terms of their remarkable maneuverability?
The secret lies in the bones and muscles of their muscles.
Hummingbirds require huge wing muscles to continuously flap their wings swiftly in flight, also known as a high frequency of wing beat. The high wing beat frequency enables birds to take part in their distinctive hovering flight, particularly in the summer when they visit your backyard feeders and flowers.
Hummingbirds slow-motion in flight.
Hummingbirds require huge amount of power to continue flying and collect food. In addition, an adaptation to the chest bone’s length is an ideal place to build wing muscles. The larger the chest bone, the greater muscle strength can be linked.
To hover, hummingbirds flail their wings with the shape of an eight-pointed figure. This wing beat design is possible due to the continuous “wrist flicks” from their shorter arm bones — a distinct characteristic that isn’t found in any other species of bird. Through a combination of movements, the bones and muscles of hummingbirds permit hovering, sideways, and backward flying at speeds of up to 50 km/hr…
Scientists looked into how the bones and muscles of hummingbirds join to produce quick, precise flight within these tiny birds; they began to wonder if the same mechanisms could be designed.
One example of this kind of inspiration can be seen in AeroVironment’s Nano Hummingbird, developed as a prototypes to be used by the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. Its Nano Hummingbird is a drone device that simulates the flight of hummingbirds in order to gain an elegant, maneuverable edge.
The drones are able to access remote places and collect data via the mounted video camera. As more research is conducted on the accuracy of hummingbird flights and their daily implications, using drones to survey natural terrains that haven’t yet been discovered effectively could be sooner than thought. These advances in drone technology could be utilized for weather monitoring as well as parcel shipping and cinematography.