BRENT: The Nanyang Technological University (NTU) and the University of California (UC) Berkeley have jointly developed a “drone”, using a giant flower beetle.
In a press release on Wednesday (Mar 18), NTU said that it can now wirelessly control the insect that averages 8g in weight and 6cm in length. An electronic backpack – with a built-in wireless receiver and transmitter – is mounted on the beetle, and it converts the received radio signals, which can be transmitted at every millisecond, remotely into a variety of actions in the beetle.
The difference between a remote-controlled synthetic drone and the “beetle drone” is its ability to maintain flight stability independently. NTU said human intervention is only needed to change the intended direction. The beetle can be directed to take off, turn left or right, or hover in mid-flight, it added.
NTU also said it can manoeuvre around obstacles and crawl into small confined spaces up to 100m away, which can prove vital during search-and-rescue missions.
Said Project Leader Assistant Professor Hirotaka Sato from the NTU School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering: “This technology could prove to be an improved alternative to remote-controlled drones as it could go into areas which are not accessible before.
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