Mimicking nature in the lab

I am endlessly awestruck by the creative genius of Mother Nature, so it follows that I am a huge advocate of biomimicry.  Biomimicry is a discipline that blends science, engineering and technology, all inspired by nature, to solve complex human problems.

To improve the design of their miniature robotic drones, mechanical engineers at Stanford University headed ‘cross-campus’ to team up with evolutionary biologists. The idea was to understand and then mechanically ‘copy’, the movements of the world’s smallest and most agile birds. 

Mechanical flight, particularly at such a small scale, is often an engineering assault course.  Lightweight robots are always at risk from flying debris, but even in clear air, they are inevitably challenged by wind or turbulence.  Happily, for their designers, the answers to these engineering conundrums were perched in an aviary in Palo Alto, California. 

Stanford researchers watch and record Parrotlets as they fly through a space lit by lasers.  Pre-take-off, a fine mist of oil is sprayed into the flight chamber.  Each and every oil particle acts like a 3-D mirror, reflecting the laser beams back into slow-motion cameras. In doing this, researchers are able to bring to light how these creatures hover and suddenly change direction – all essential functionalities for their own mini-drones.  

Their iridescent feathers are not the only dazzling characteristic of hummingbirds.  They also have an ability to flap their wings in a distinct motion at a rate of up to 80 times per second.  This movement is so fast, that the human eye is sure to miss it, even if one is quick enough to see these tiny swift creatures at all.  The soothing ‘hummmm’ sound generated by their wing motion varies in pitch, according to their species. Would you believe, there are some 320 different types of Hummingbird.

The stunning photographic images of turbulence resulting from this research, is a form of art in itself.  It made me nostalgic over my own doctoral research days in computational fluid dynamics – where I was developing software that would visually expose how fluids flow in confined spaces, such as buildings, engine cavities or heart stents. 

The accuracy of computer simulations that I built over a decade ago for my own research, also had to be proved with real-life experiments.  Back then I used wind tunnels and water tanks to recreate ‘reality’.  So, it was amazing to note how advanced the concept of ‘accuracy’ has become.  Today, unlike in my day, empirical results are not recorded with analog instrumentation, but with sophisticated cameras in high definition; on (almost) nano-second time-scales. 

Personally, I’m more awestruck by Stanford’s creative methodology in seeking nature’s solutions to engineering mysteries.  Yes, the light, camera and action of the experiment was impressive.  But, as you will see in the segment, it was the hours of hard work put in designing and 3-D printing the smallest pair of aviator goggles I have ever seen in my life that made the longest-lasting impression on me. 

Created to protect the birds eyes from the laser lights of the flight-chamber, this stylish and perfectly fitting ornithological piece of eyewear, represented the amalgamation of compassion, creativity and curiosity that biomimicry is to me. Who ever said science has no soul?