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Quadcopter these days It’s so precious.They take off and hover, take pictures or something, then land, recharge—then nonsenseIf these drones are birds, they will become prey. But the stereotyped nature-inspired aerial gripper, or SNAG, will be their top predator.This new quadcopter has legEach is equipped with four 3D printed claws, which can lock anything in contact with them, whether it is a tree branch that can rest, or one day, other drones will fly where they shouldn’t be. Yes, it is a drone that can hunt drones.
Over the years, quadcopters have mastered the sky, but haven’t mastered much landing: drones can easily tip over and turn their rotors on moderately uneven surfaces. In contrast, birds can wrap almost anything with their feet, grab with toe pads and claws, which can be purchased based on the roughness of the branches. David Lentink, a biologist and robotics expert at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands, said: “Everything is a landing zone for birds.” Paper Describe the robot in the log Scientific robot“For us, this is really inspiring: if you only design different landing gears, you can stop anywhere.”
SNAG was particularly inspired by the peregrine falcon, which is a predator among predators.The speed of this raptor dive bomb is as high as 200 miles per hour, Crashed into other birds in mid-air, and stuck their claws into their flesh. It is the fastest animal on earth and an absolute threat in the sky.
SNAG weighs 1.5 pounds and is actually only one size, although it has no wings and more rotors. When one of SNAG’s legs touches the branch, it begins to collapse and fold up like you bend your knees. The impact causes the leg tendons to grow, pulling the wires under each toe. The more the leg collapses, the greater the tension accumulated in the tendon until the quick release mechanism triggers the spring to pull the tendon tighter, thereby greatly increasing the grip. The paw and toe pads are made of deformable rubber and covered with a grip belt to help grip the SNAG.
Basically, the robot’s leg converts the energy of its collision with a tree branch into grasping energy in just 50 milliseconds. “The robot has momentum—It’s not like a helicopter landing,” Lentink said. “This is a dynamic landing, a controlled collision. After landing, the accelerometer on the right foot of SNAG will check the balance of the robot. If necessary, the motor of the hip will correct its posture. To release the handle, another motor will reduce the tension of the tendon. Because there is an elastic band on the top of the toe, once this When this tension is released, the finger will automatically roll back to the open position, allowing SNAG to fly away.
In this video, you can see the robot’s legs catching “prey” and the peregrine falcon may attack other birds from above. When the object comes into contact with the foot, the energy of the impact is converted into the energy used by the robot to clamp the claws.
This is taking off in slow motion. SNAG relies on its rotor to generate lift, just like a hummingbird takes off by flapping its wings quickly. (The real peregrine falcon actually slaps with Push it off the ground with its powerful legs. )
One of the current limitations of SNAG is that it is not autonomous. In order to carry out these experiments, the pilot must remotely control the robot. But Lentink and his colleagues are working on a way for the robot to locate a branch, calculate how to approach it, and land on its own.
SNAG is not the first quadcopter with legs.The LEg ON Aerial Robotic DrOne (also known as Leonardo) of the California Institute of Technology made its debut in 2019. Its limbs can rest on the ground; it is designed Explore Mars betterHowever, both SNAG and Leonardo are pursuing the same thing: energy efficiency. Hovering the drone in an appropriate position to monitor the area will quickly drain the battery. (NASA has Send a helicopter to Mars, But it has no legs, so its flight time is very short. )
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