LAZA system paves way for insect-sized flying robots

Until now, typical micro flying robots have used motors, gears and other complex transmission systems to achieve the up-and-down motion of the wings. This has added complexity, weight and undesired dynamic effects.

The new advance, published in Science Robotics, could pave the way for smaller, lighter and more effective micro flying robots for environmental monitoring, search and rescue and deployment in hazardous environments.

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Researchers from Bristol’s Faculty of Engineering, led by professor of robotics Jonathan Rossiter, took inspiration from bees and other flying insects to successfully demonstrate a direct-drive artificial muscle system called the Liquid-amplified Zipping Actuator (LAZA). 

LAZA achieves wing motion using no rotating parts or gears. The system is said to greatly simplify the flapping mechanism, enabling future miniaturisation of flapping robots down to the size of insects.