Dubbed PigeonBot, the robot is able to dive down and make sharp turns as nimbly as a bird and comes equipped with 40 pigeon feathers on its wings which are connected to artificial limbs, consisting of ‘wrists’ and ‘fingers’, using elastic bands.

The dexterity of birds in flight has long been attributed to their ability to morph their wing planform parameters simultaneously, including sweep, span and area, in a way that has proven to be particularly challenging to embody robotically.

Through study of their skeletons, the researchers found that pigeons control their 20 primary and 20 secondary feathers via wrist and finger motion.

To replicate this control principle in a robot, they developed a biohybrid morphing wing and added the real feathers to gain a greater understanding of the underlying design principles.

Study author Eric Chang told the PA news agency: “Real feathers are incredibly soft and robust and have properties that currently cannot be replicated artificially.

“Additionally, using real feathers in our robotic morphing wing allows us to answer biological questions about how feathers interact in real birds.”

Flight tests of PigeonBot demonstrated that the soft feathered wings morph rapidly and robustly under different aerodynamic conditions and make it more able to withstand crashes.

“Feathers also have many other useful properties for functional wings: they are firm enough to sustain the lift of the wing, yet soft and repairable, which allows them to be easily preened back into shape after a hard landing,” Chang added.

The researchers studied the skeletal structure of the wings of a pigeon cadaver and developed a computer model of the bird’s wing motion.

Using the model, they designed the wings so that each feather in the PigeonBot would move in the same way as in a real pigeon. Four mechanical components, or actuators, were used to “drive the motion of all the feathers linked together with tuned elastic bands”.

The researchers believe that their work could pave the way for making drones safer in the air.

Chang said, “A biohybrid robot is a perfect biology research tool to study bird flight. PigeonBot is a step toward making flying robots safer to interact with and closer to the flight performance of real birds. It can inspire future robotic platforms that enable bird studies without ecological or welfare impact.”

Other applications include developing smart materials that can mimic the softness and stable performance of real feathers.

Dubbed PigeonBot, the robot is able to dive down and make sharp turns as nimbly as a bird and comes equipped with 40 pigeon feathers on its wings which are connected to artificial limbs, consisting of ‘wrists’ and ‘fingers’, using elastic bands.

The dexterity of birds in flight has long been attributed to their ability to morph their wing planform parameters simultaneously, including sweep, span and area, in a way that has proven to be particularly challenging to embody robotically.

Through study of their skeletons, the researchers found that pigeons control their 20 primary and 20 secondary feathers via wrist and finger motion.

To replicate this control principle in a robot, they developed a biohybrid morphing wing and added the real feathers to gain a greater understanding of the underlying design principles.

Study author Eric Chang told the PA news agency: “Real feathers are incredibly soft and robust and have properties that currently cannot be replicated artificially.

“Additionally, using real feathers in our robotic morphing wing allows us to answer biological questions about how feathers interact in real birds.”

Flight tests of PigeonBot demonstrated that the soft feathered wings morph rapidly and robustly under different aerodynamic conditions and make it more able to withstand crashes.

“Feathers also have many other useful properties for functional wings: they are firm enough to sustain the lift of the wing, yet soft and repairable, which allows them to be easily preened back into shape after a hard landing,” Chang added.

The researchers studied the skeletal structure of the wings of a pigeon cadaver and developed a computer model of the bird’s wing motion.

Using the model, they designed the wings so that each feather in the PigeonBot would move in the same way as in a real pigeon. Four mechanical components, or actuators, were used to “drive the motion of all the feathers linked together with tuned elastic bands”.

The researchers believe that their work could pave the way for making drones safer in the air.

Chang said, “A biohybrid robot is a perfect biology research tool to study bird flight. PigeonBot is a step toward making flying robots safer to interact with and closer to the flight performance of real birds. It can inspire future robotic platforms that enable bird studies without ecological or welfare impact.”

Other applications include developing smart materials that can mimic the softness and stable performance of real feathers.