Scientists Create a Bat Bot

B2 bat bot replicated the flight mechanism of real bats.

Bats are fascinating creatures for scientists for several reasons, from the way they navigate the world around them to their flight mechanisms. Now, researchers were able to create a robot that simulates the key flight aspects of bats.

The bat bot has been officially dubbed as B2 and was developed by scientists from CalTech and the University of Illinois-Urbana-Champaign. The B2 bat bot features soft and articulated wings that are able to replicate the basic function of biological bats.

According to Alireza Ramezani, a researcher from the University of Illinois, the invention has successfully demonstrated the advanced design of a self-contained aerial robot which is able to fly not through propellers or engines but using flapping wings, that is also able to fly autonomously.

The design of the wings is very similar to that of the bats featuring wing conformations and dynamic wing articulations while weighing just 93 grams.

Researchers stated the biological bat has a flight mechanism which involves over 40 types of joints. These joints interlock the bones and various muscles with one another and lead to the creation of a musculoskeletal system which can change its shape and allows the bat to move in a number of independent directions.

The scientists were able to reduce the number of joints to nine in the bat bot, while still maintaining the same basic function as that of the biological bat. More specifically, the B2 robot uses a skeleton array capable of morphing thanks its silicone-based membrane skin. The bat bot changes its articulated structure even in mid-flight, without even losing the smooth and effective aerodynamic surface.

This function is quite similar to that of real bats whose wings act like a rubber sheet when they flap. The “sheet” fills up with air and starts to slightly deform, which at the end of its downstroke motion flap, the wing is able to push out the air as it springs back into its initial position. This mechanism is what amplifies the potential of flexible membranes.

The researchers believe that their bat bot can also be used to contribute to several biological studies on the mechanisms of bat flight. The robot can reconstruct several of the maneuvers performed by bats just by applying a few movement patterns.

The study detailing the invention of the B2 bat bot was published in the AAAS Science Robotics journal.

Image credit: Alireza Ramezani, Soon-Jo Chung, Seth Hutchinson

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Roxanne Briean

I am a geek, a gamer and a writer. I have always been fascinated with the online community. At the moment I work as a full-time writer and study interior design. When I'm not scouring the net in search of interesting new gadgets and software I spend my time in MOBAs or drawing.