Bio-inspired wing-folding mechanism of micro air vehicle (MAV)

Abstract

Over the past few years, many researchers have shown an interest in micro air vehicle (MAV), since it can be used for rescue mission and investigation of danger zone which is difficult for human being to enter. In recent years, many researchers try to develop high-performance MAVs, but a little attention has been given to the wing-folding mechanism of wings. When the bird and the flying insects land, they usually fold their wings. If they do not fold their wings, their movement area is limited. In this paper, we focused on the artificial wing-folding mechanism. We designed a new artificial wing that has link mechanism. With the wing-folding mechanism, the wing span was reduced to 15%. In addition, we set feathers separately on the end of wings like those of real birds. The wings make thrust force by the change of the shape of the feathers. However, the wings could not produce enough lift force to lift it. Therefore, we have come to the conclusion that it is necessary to optimize the wings design to get stronger lift force by flapping.