Design, fabrication, and analysis of a 3DOF, 3cm flapping-wing MAV

Significant advances in meso-scale prototyping are enabling rigid, articulated, and actuated microrobotic structures. Here, an elegant manufacturing paradigm is employed for the creation of a biologically- inspired flapping-wing micro air vehicle with similar dimensions to Dipteran insects. A novel wing transmission system is presented which contains one actuated and two passive degrees of freedom. The design and fabrication are detailed and the performance of the resulting structure is elucidated highlighting two key metrics: the wing trajectory and the thrust generated.

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