Abstract:
Research in the field of Flapping Wing Micro Air Vehicle (FMAV) is an ongoing
quest to master the natural flyers by mechanical means. The field is characterized by
unsteady aerodynamics, whose knowledge is still developing. FMAV based on avian
flight is called ‘Ornithopter’ and that based on insect flight is known as ‘Entomopter’.
This research is restricted to Ornithopters only. The kinematics of real birds are difficult
to be mimicked because of extreme complexities involved and weight limitation of an
ornithopter. Most of the successful ornithopters are designed only with flapping
mechanism having flexible membrane elliptical wings. Flapping frequency, flapping
amplitude, incidence angle, flexibility of wings and their geometry are the important
design parameters for an ornithopter. This research has been organized in four parts:
(a) Formulation of Aerodynamic Model, (b) Parametric Study of the model, (c) Limited
Experimentation of FMAV after manufacturing the FMAV wings and associated gear
mechanism and (d) Comparison/Analysis of the results. For experimentation a Whirl
Arm Test Stand has also been designed and developed in the course of this research.
The theoretical results are generally in conformity with the experimental results and
therefore the suggested aerodynamic model can be used for further study and final
development of flyable Ornithopter
