cisely register the wing’s position. Both the flapping and bending forces are conveyed from the transmission to the hand wing via a flexible link. The crank mechanism has no dead centre and thus runs evenly with minimal peak loads, thus ensuring smooth flight. The opposing movement of the head and torso sections in any spatial direction is synchronised by means of two electric motors and cables. The torso thus bends aerodynamically, with simultaneous weight displacement; this makes SmartBird highly agile and manoeuvrable. The tail section: an aid for lift and control The tail of SmartBird also produces lift; it functions as both a pitch elevator and a yaw rudder. When the bird flies in a straight line, the V-position of its two flapping wings stabilises it in a similar way to a conventional vertical stabiliser of an aircraft. To initiate a turn to the left or right, the tail is tilted: when it is rotated about the longitudinal axis, a yaw moment about the vertical axis is produced. Measurement, control and regulation The on-board electronics allow precise and thus efficient control of wing torsion as a function of wing position. For this purpose, a powerful microcontroller calculates the optimal setting of two servo motors, which adjust the torsion of each wing. The flapping movement and the torsion are synchronised by three Hall sensors, which determine the absolute position of the motor for the flapping movement. Since the active joint torsion drive requires precise coordination between the flapping and twisting movements, it is subjected to continuous all-round monitoring. Intelligent monitoring The wing’s position and torsion are monitored by two-way radio communication with ZigBee Protocol, by means of which operating data are conveyed such as battery charge, power consumption and input by the pilot. In addition, the torsion control parameters can be adjusted and thus optimised in real time during flight. Together with the electronic control system, this intelligent monitoring enables the mechanism to adapt to new situations within a fraction of a second. This facilitates the simple, efficient and weight-optimised mechanical design of the bird model for optimised efficiency of the overall biomechatronic system in flight operation. ... and downward wing strokes 5
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