Date of Award
January 2015
Degree Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Department
Mechanical Engineering
First Advisor
XINYAN DENG
Committee Member 1
DENGFENG SUN
Committee Member 2
GEORGE T CHIU
Committee Member 3
JIANGHAI HU
Abstract
Flying animals with flapping wings may best exemplify the astonishing ability of natural selection on design optimization. They evince extraordinary prowess to control their flight, while demonstrating rich repertoire of agile maneuvers. They remain surprisingly stable during hover and can make sharp turns in a split second. Characterized by high-frequency flapping wing motion, unsteady aerodynamics, and the ability to hover and perform fast maneuvers, insect-like flapping flight presents an extraordinary aerial locomotion strategy perfected at small size scales. Flapping Wing Micro Aerial Vehicles (FWMAVs) hold great promise in bridging the performance gap between engineered flying vehicles and their natural counterparts. They are perfect candidates for potential applications such as fast response robots in search and rescue, environmental friendly agents in precision agriculture, surveillance and intelligence gathering MAVs, and miniature nodes in sensor networks.
Recommended Citation
Zhang, Jian, "DESIGN AND CONTROL OF A HUMMINGBIRD-SIZE FLAPPING WING MICRO AERIAL VEHICLE" (2015). Open Access Dissertations. 1329.
https://docs.lib.purdue.edu/open_access_dissertations/1329