The development of stimuli-responsive polymers has opened up a wealth of material-related opportunities for the next generation of small-body, small-body, radio-controlled robots. For some time now, engineers have known how to use these materials to make tiny robots that can walk, swim, and jump. So far, no one has been able to make them fly.
Researchers from the Light Robots group at the University of Tampere are now looking at how to make smart materials fly. Hao Zeng, a research fellow of the academy and group leader, and Jianfeng Yang, a doctoral researcher, came up with a new design for their project called FAIRY – flying flying robots based on the synthesis of light-responsive materials. They have developed a polymer-assembling robot that flies by wind and is controlled by light.
“Higher than its natural counterparts, this artificial seed is equipped with a soft actuator. The actuator is made of light-responsive liquid crystal plastics, which prompt the opening or closing of the filaments when excited by visible light,” explains Hao Zeng.
Light controls the artificial fairy
The artificial fairy developed by Zeng and Yang has many biomimetic features. Because of its high porosity (0.95) and lightweight structure (1.2 mg), it can easily float in wind-blown air. Moreover, the generation of a separate and stable vortex loop enables wind-assisted long-distance travel.
“The fairy can be powered and controlled by a light source, such as a laser beam or LED,” says Zeng.
This means that light can be used to change the shape of the tiny dandelion seed-like structure. The fairy can manually adjust to the direction and strength of the wind by changing its shape. A light beam can also be used to control the take-off and landing procedures for polymer synthesis.
Potential application opportunities in agriculture
Next, the researchers will focus on improving the sensitivity of the materials to enable operation of the device in sunlight. In addition, they will upgrade the hull so that it can carry microelectronic devices such as GPS and sensors as well as biochemical compounds.
According to Zeng, there is potential for more significant applications.
“It sounds like science fiction, but the proof-of-concept experiments included in our research show that the robot we developed provides an important step towards suitable real-world applications for IVF,” he reveals.
In the future, millions of artificial pollen-bearing dandelion seeds could be freely spread by natural wind and then directed by light toward specific areas with trees awaiting pollination.
“This will have a huge impact on agriculture globally because the loss of pollinators due to global warming has become a serious threat to biodiversity and food production,” says Zeng.
Challenges still need to be resolved
However, many problems must be solved first. For example, how do you control where to land in a precise way, how do you reuse devices and make them biodegradable? These issues require close collaboration with materials scientists and people working in microrobotics.
The FAIRY project started in September 2021 and will run until August 2026. It is funded by the Academy of Finland. The flying robot is being researched in collaboration with Dr. Winky is From the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems (Germany) and Dr. Hang Zhang from Aalto University.