If even the slightest distraction during a flight has arrived for the barf bag, then you won’t want to climb on board this Russian Contraption that uses flapping wings to take flight. But it shows that Mother Nature’s design can be replaced one day to turn into air travel.
This is not the first time we have reinvented how aerial creatures such as insects and birds take to the sky. In fact, mechanical ornithopters (flying planes using a flapping wing machine) are so common that people have been building elastic-powered versions out of balsa wood and paper for years. For $ 40 you can robotic bird remote control that’s incredibly mobile for a toy. What is impressive about this ban is called Serenity, which seems to have been based on one of Many sketches at Da Vinci of possible flying devices, is its scale.
The Russian-built ornithopter is a testament to the fact that their skeletal structure and bodies are designed not to be as light as possible for small insects or birds. With a fuselage that appears to be about 10 feet long, three sets of flapping wings, and all the tools, connectors, wires and batteries needed to create the flapping movement, Serenity is easily more heavier than even our largest flying creatures on Earth. . It doesn’t seem big enough to take on a human passenger or pilot yet, but that’s just in terms of scale and funding – future versions of Serenity could be even bigger.
Steady up and down movement of the wings makes Serenity look like it’s going to be a bumpy ride for anyone trying to climb on board, but in the same way birds can keep their heads steady while they shaking their wings suddenly, there is no doubt that this is a problem that can be overcome with more engineering. But why go to all the trouble when planes are working properly?
Modern airplanes rely on forward movement to create a lift over their wings and stay aloft, powered by jet engines or propellers creating sparkles – both highly noisy solutions. It also means that planes have a minimum speed that they have to maintain or else they will stand up and fall from the sky. Using fly wing movements to generate a lift opens up incredible ability to maneuver, as anyone who watches dragonflies while dancing around hunting mosquitoes, or mosquitoes- can mushrooms drink cautiously from a flower while it is still flying. Serenity is almost impossible to get past the middle of the sky, and even its ability to steer is limited, but it does reveal some interesting potential. Will a Boeing 777 ever flutter its big wings? Maybe not, but flapping wings can be said to be a safer alternative to putting a jet engine on people’s backs as a solution to personal flights.