4 Operationally reliable: flight stability thanks to … … continuous data acquisition and diagnostics in real time Individually controlled: since the wings have nine degrees of freedom, each of them can be set and moved in a specific manner Thirteen degrees of freedom for unique flight manoeuvres A motor in the bottom part of the housing provides the drive for the common beat frequency of the four wings, which is adjustable between 15 and 20 Hz (1st degree of freedom). Like a real dragonfly, the BionicOpter’s wings can be turned from horizontal to vertical. Each wing is individually actuated by a servo motor during this process and twisted by up to 90 degrees (2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th degree of freedom). Four motors at the wing joints control the amplitudes. A linear movement in the wing root infinitely adjusts the integrated crank mechanism to vary the deflection between approximately 80 and 130 degrees (6th, 7th, 8th, 9th degree of freedom). The swivelling of the wings determines the thrust direction. The thrust intensity can be regulated using the amplitude controller. The combination of both enables the dragonfly to hover on the spot, manoeuvre backwards and transition smoothly from hovering to forward flight. The last four degrees of freedom are in the head and tail. The body of the dragonfly is fitted with four flexible muscles made of nitinol. These shape memory alloys (SMAs) contract when exposed to heat and expand when they cool down. Passing an electric current through the SMAs produces ultralight actuators that move the head horizontally and the tail vertically. (10th, 11th, 12th, 13th degree of freedom) Process reliability through condition monitoring In order to stabilise the flying object, data on the position and the twisting of the wings is continuously recorded and evaluated in real time during the dragonfly’s flight. The acceleration and tilting angle of the BionicOpter in space can be measured using the inertia sensors. The integrated position and acceleration sensors detect the speed and spatial direction of the dragonfly’s flight. For Festo, the principle of continuous diagnostics is a guarantee of operational reliability and process stability – whether in bionic flying objects or everyday industrial use.
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