Earwig-inspired foldable origami wing for micro air vehicle gliding

Risa Ishiguro; Takumi Kawasetsu; Yutaro Motoori; Jamie Paik; Koh Hosoda

doi:10.3389/frobt.2023.1255666

Earwig-inspired foldable origami wing for micro air vehicle gliding

Front Robot AI. 2023 Nov 9:10:1255666. doi: 10.3389/frobt.2023.1255666. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Risa Ishiguro¹, Takumi Kawasetsu¹, Yutaro Motoori², Jamie Paik³, Koh Hosoda¹

Affiliations

¹ Adaptive Robotics Laboratory, Division of Systems Science, Department of Systems Innovation, Graduate School of Engineering Science, Osaka University, Toyonaka, Japan.
² Fluid Mechanics Group, Graduate School of Engineering Science, Osaka University, Toyonaka, Japan.
³ Reconfigurable Robotics Laboratory, Institute of Mechanical Engineering, School of Engineering, Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland.

Abstract

Foldable wings serve as an effective solution for reducing the size of micro air vehicles (MAVs) during non-flight phases, without compromising the gliding capacity provided by the wing area. Among insects, earwigs exhibit the highest folding ratio in their wings. Inspired by the intricate folding mechanism in earwig hindwings, we aimed to develop artificial wings with similar high-folding ratios. By leveraging an origami hinge, which is a compliant mechanism, we successfully designed and prototyped wings capable of opening and folding in the wind, which helps reduce the surface area by a factor of seven. The experimental evaluation involved measuring the lift force generated by the wings under Reynolds numbers less than 2.2 × 10⁴. When in the open position, our foldable wings demonstrated increased lift force proportional to higher wind speeds. Properties such as wind responsiveness, efficient folding ratios, and practical feasibility highlight the potential of these wings for diverse applications in MAVs.

Keywords: MAV; foldable wing; insect-inspired; origami; wind tunnel experiment.

Grants and funding

This research was partly supported by Humanware Innovation Program, Osaka University, and by JST, the establishment of university fellowships towards the creation of science technology innovation, Grant Number JPMJFS2125.