Micro-structures, nanomechanical properties and flight performance of three beetles with different folding ratios

Jiyu Sun; Pengpeng Li; Yongwei Yan; Fa Song; Nuo Xu; Zhijun Zhang

doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.75

Micro-structures, nanomechanical properties and flight performance of three beetles with different folding ratios

Beilstein J Nanotechnol. 2022 Aug 26:13:845-856. doi: 10.3762/bjnano.13.75. eCollection 2022.

Authors

Jiyu Sun¹, Pengpeng Li¹, Yongwei Yan¹, Fa Song¹, Nuo Xu¹, Zhijun Zhang²

Affiliations

¹ Key Laboratory of Bionic Engineering (Ministry of Education, China), Jilin University, Changchun, 130022, P.R. China.
² Key Laboratory of CNC Equipment Reliability (Ministry of Education) and School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Jilin University, Changchun, 130022, P.R. China.

Abstract

When beetles are not in flight, their hind wings are folded and hidden under the elytra to reduce their size. This provided inspiration for the design of flapping-wing micro aerial vehicles (FWMAVs). In this paper, microstructures and nanomechanical properties of three beetle species with different wing folding ratios living in different environments were investigated. Factors affecting their flight performance, that is, wind speed, folding ratio, aspect ratio, and flapping frequency, were examined using a wind tunnel. It was found that the wing folding ratio correlated with the lift force of the beetles. Wind speed, folding ratio, aspect ratio, and flapping frequency had a combined effect on the flight performance of the beetles. The results will be helpful to design new deployable FWMAVs.

Keywords: beetle hind wings; flight performance; folding ratio; nanoindentation; wind tunnel.

Grants and funding

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant number 31970454), the Aviation Science Foundation of China (2020Z0740R4001), the 111 Project (B16020) of China.