By Marshall Swearingen MSU NEWS SERVICE
BOZEMAN — In
the engineer’s world, vibration is usually a bad thing. It means that something
is loose, out of balance or unexpectedly catching the wind, that energy is
being wasted or a part is being damaged. Engineers usually try to make
vibration go away.
So it’s
notable that Montana State University engineering researcher Mark
Jankauski studies beneficial vibrations that could help create a new
generation of flying machines. To do that, he turns to an unusual inspiration:
insects.
“Insects
have really leveraged vibration to enhance their flying efficiency,” said
Jankauski, assistant professor in MSU’s Department of Mechanical and
Industrial Engineering. “It allows them to do some amazing
things.”
A fruit fly,
for example, flaps its wings 10 times or more with a single nerve pulse to
specialized muscles in its midsection, according to Jankauski. The muscle
contraction creates a vibration that does the actual flapping, conserving
energy and giving the fly the maneuverability that comes with rapid wing
motion.
Backed by a
new, $619,000 CAREER grant from the National Science Foundation, Jankauski will
develop models that explain the inner workings of vibrational insect flight and
how they could be applied to designing drones or other small aircraft.
“The
question really is, how do we look at these natural systems, learn the concepts
behind them and apply them to engineering,” Jankauski said.
In his lab,
Jankauski has specialized devices that can apply precise forces to wing
replicas and insects and measure how they bend and flex. In this project, he
will observe how the intricate flight systems of insects such
as honeybees and hawk moths respond to vibration. Using that data,
his team can develop sophisticated computer algorithms that approximate the
vibrating flight behavior. The models can then be used to predict the workings
of vibrating structures that don’t exist in nature.
