Integrated Design and Analysis of an Amplitude-Variable Flapping Mechanism for FMAV

Bird is one of natural flying masters. It can take advantage of limited energy to fly a long distance. However, the performance of FMAV (Flapping-wing Micro Air Vehicle) is far from the birds. Zoologists have showed that birds can dynamically adjust the flapping amplitude and frequency of its wings. This means that the energy consumption of birds in a variety of flight conditions is minimum. The development of a novel flapping mechanism for FMAV was introduced. The mechanism can achieve independently controllable left and right wings’ flapping-amplitude, both symmetric and asymmetric. The kinematics equations and the static equilibrium equations are deduced for the design and optimization of the AVFM (Amplitude-Variable Flapping Mechanism). The kinetic character of the mechanism is evaluated through computation and simulation. The result shows that the flapping-amplitude of the wings can be changed symmetrically as well as asymmetrically without affecting in-phase flapping motions.