Butterfly-imitated flapping wing aircraft with flexible wings
By using a butterfly-inspired flexible wing structure and a brushless motor-driven flapping motion, combined with a steering mechanism and flexible hinges, the problems of flight instability, short endurance, and attitude distortion in existing flapping-wing aircraft have been solved, achieving more efficient flight performance and flexible steering.
Patent Information
- Application Number
- CN202520928473.1
- Authority / Receiving Office
- CN · China
- Patent Type
- Utility models(China)
- Current Assignee / Owner
- Filing Date
- 2025-05-12
- Publication Date
- 2026-03-17
- Estimated Expiration
- 2035-05-12
AI Technical Summary
Existing biomimetic flapping-wing aircraft mostly use rigid wing structures, resulting in flight attitudes that differ greatly from those of living organisms in nature. This makes it difficult to utilize aerodynamic characteristics, leading to low flight efficiency, insufficient endurance, and inflexible steering, thus failing to meet the maneuverability requirements in complex environments.
It adopts a butterfly-inspired flexible wing structure, and the left and right rudder arms are driven by a brushless motor to swing up and down at the same frequency. Combined with the steering mechanism, the center of gravity is changed, and the wings are connected by flexible hinges to achieve phase difference flapping, which simulates the movement of natural butterfly wings. Combined with electromagnetic rudder, it can achieve flexible steering.
It improves the stability and endurance of the aircraft, enhances its maneuverability in complex environments, makes its flight attitude more natural, and improves its flight performance and energy utilization efficiency.
Smart Images
Figure CN223999757U_ABST
Abstract
Description
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] The utility model relates to bionic flapping wing aircraft technical field, specifically, relate to a kind of flexible wing flapping wing aircraft of imitating butterfly. BACKGROUND
[0002] As a kind of imitating bird, insect and other biological flapping wing flight mode aircraft, bionic flapping wing aircraft shows unique advantages and potential in micro air vehicle field.It realizes flight by simulating biological flight mechanism, and the multi-degree-of-freedom characteristics of its flapping wing movement give the aircraft strong maneuverability and environmental adaptability, making it have broad application prospects in disaster rescue, environmental monitoring and intelligence reconnaissance in military field in civil field scenarios.Especially, the application potential of insect-like flapping wing aircraft in complex terrain or narrow space is highly concerned due to its small size and high concealment.
[0003] At present, in the field of bionic flapping wing aircraft, certain research results have been achieved at home and abroad.Most of the existing bionic flapping wing aircrafts adopt rigid wing structure, which has many problems in the flight process.Rigid wing makes the flight attitude of the aircraft greatly different from that of the biological in nature, and cannot fully utilize the aerodynamic characteristics of the wing in the flapping process.At the same time, rigid wing is difficult to make adaptive adjustment according to the change of air flow during flight, resulting in low flight efficiency and insufficient endurance.Furthermore, the existing steering mode is not flexible enough, which limits the maneuverability of the aircraft in complex environment, and cannot meet the high requirements of flight stability, flexibility and endurance of the aircraft in actual application scenarios. UTILITY MODEL CONTENTS
[0004] The utility model aims at providing a kind of flexible wing flapping wing aircraft of imitating butterfly, solve the problem of unstable flight, short endurance and attitude distortion of existing flapping wing aircraft.
[0005] The utility model realizes the following technical scheme: a kind of flexible wing flapping wing aircraft of imitating butterfly, including fuselage and the wing being symmetrically arranged on the both sides of fuselage, fuselage includes drive mechanism and steering mechanism, drive mechanism includes rack and left rudder arm and right rudder arm being respectively rotationally connected on rack, brushless motor is provided on rack, brushless motor is transmissionally connected with left rudder arm and right rudder arm by gear set to realize the up-and-down swing of left rudder arm and right rudder arm with same frequency, steering mechanism is fixed on rack and swings left and right to change the gravity center of fuselage to realize steering, and steering mechanism swing end is connected with power supply electrically connected with brushless motor and steering mechanism, wing is connected with left rudder arm and right rudder arm respectively by wing panel.
[0006] Furthermore, the wing includes a forewing and a hindwing, and the wingplate includes a front wingplate and a rear wingplate connected by a flexible hinge. The forewing is connected to the front wingplate, and the hindwing is connected to the rear wingplate. The front wingplate is engaged with the left rudder arm and the right rudder arm respectively.
[0007] Furthermore, the forewing includes a framework composed of anterior wing veins, lateral wing veins, posterior wing veins, and a central wing vein, and a forewing membrane covering the framework. One end of the anterior wing vein, posterior wing vein, and central wing vein all converge and connect to the forewing plate. The other end of the anterior wing vein and the other end of the central wing vein converge at the middle of the lateral wing vein. One end of the lateral wing vein converges at the middle of the anterior wing vein, and the other end of the lateral wing vein connects to the other end of the posterior wing vein.
[0008] Furthermore, the hindwing includes the hindwing vein and the hindwing membrane covering the hindwing vein, with the hindwing vein connected end to end to the hindwing plate.
[0009] Furthermore, both the front and rear wing panels are made of PLA material using 3D printing.
[0010] Furthermore, the flexible hinge is made of thermoplastic polyurethane rubber material.
[0011] Furthermore, the gear set includes a primary gear, a secondary double gear, a first and third stage gear, and a second and third stage gear. The primary gear is coaxially connected to the brushless motor and meshes with the large gear of the secondary double gear. The first and third stage gears mesh with the small gear of the second double gear, and the second and third stage gears mesh with the first and third stage gears. The first and third stage gears are connected to the left rudder arm via a first connecting rod. One end of the first connecting rod is eccentrically rotatably connected to the first and third stage gear, and the other end of the first connecting rod is rotatably connected to the movable swing end of the left rudder arm. The second and third stage gears are connected to the right rudder arm via a second connecting rod. One end of the second connecting rod is eccentrically rotatably connected to the second and third stage gear, and the other end of the second connecting rod is rotatably connected to the movable swing end of the right rudder arm.
[0012] Furthermore, the steering mechanism includes a base plate and an electromagnetic rudder disposed on the base plate, and the base plate has a square hole that is interference-fitted with the frame.
[0013] This utility model has at least the following advantages and beneficial effects:
[0014] (1) Driven by a brushless motor and transmitted through a gear set, the left and right rudder arms swing up and down at the same frequency. By swinging left and right through the steering mechanism, the relative position of the power source behind them is changed, thereby changing the overall center of gravity during flight and realizing the functions of stable flapping wing action and flexible steering of the aircraft.
[0015] (2) By connecting the forewing and hindwing with a flexible hinge, the phase difference flapping of the wings of a natural butterfly is simulated, so that the windward area of the wings will change with the flapping of the wings, which is conducive to flight, improving flight performance and similar to the flight posture of a natural butterfly, reducing energy waste and extending flight endurance. Attached Figure Description
[0016] Figure 1 A top view of a butterfly-inspired flexible flapping-wing aircraft provided by this utility model.
[0017] Figure 2 This is a structural schematic diagram of a butterfly-inspired flexible flapping-wing aircraft provided by this utility model.
[0018] Figure 3 This utility model Figure 2 A magnified view of a portion of point A in the middle.
[0019] Figure 4 A partial exploded view of a butterfly-inspired flexible flapping-wing aircraft provided for this utility model.
[0020] Figure 5 An exploded view of the drive mechanism in a butterfly-inspired flexible flapping-wing aircraft provided by this utility model.
[0021] Reference numerals: 1-Drive mechanism, 10-Frame, 11-Left rudder arm, 12-Right rudder arm, 13-Brushless motor, 2-Steering mechanism, 21-Base plate, 22-Electromagnetic rudder, 3-Gear set, 31-First stage gear, 32-Second stage double gear, 33-First and third stage gears, 34-Second and third stage gears, 35-First link, 36-Second link, 4-Power supply, 5-Fender, 50-Flexible hinge, 51-Forewing plate, 52-Rear wing plate, 6-Forewing, 61-Forewing vein, 62-Side vein, 63-Rear vein, 64-Intermediate vein, 65-Forewing membrane, 7-Rearwing, 71-Rearing vein, 72-Rearing membrane. Detailed Implementation
[0022] The specific implementation method is described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.
[0023] Example
[0024] like Figures 1 to 5 As shown, this embodiment mainly discloses a butterfly-inspired flexible flapping-wing aircraft, including a fuselage and wings symmetrically arranged on both sides of the fuselage;
[0025] The fuselage includes a drive mechanism 1 and a steering mechanism 2. The drive mechanism 1 includes a frame 10 and a left control arm 11 and a right control arm 12 rotatably connected to the frame 10. A brushless motor 13 is mounted on the frame 10, and the brushless motor 13 is connected to the left control arm 11 and the right control arm 12 via a gear set 3 to achieve synchronized up-and-down movement of the left and right control arms 11 and 12. The steering mechanism 2 is fixed to the frame 10 and swings left and right to change the center of gravity of the fuselage to achieve steering. The swinging end of the steering mechanism 2 is connected to a power source 4 that is electrically connected to the brushless motor 13 and the steering mechanism 2. The wings are connected to the left control arm 11 and the right control arm 12 via fenders 5. Specifically, the frame 10 is made of carbon fiber, which is characterized by high strength, wear resistance, and light weight. Driven by the brushless motor 13 and transmitted through the gear set 3, the left control arm 11 and the right control arm 12 swing up and down at the same frequency, thereby driving the wings to complete flapping motion and providing stable lift for the aircraft. By swinging the steering mechanism 2 left and right, the relative position of the power source 4 behind it is changed, thereby changing the overall center of gravity during flight and thus achieving the steering of the aircraft.
[0026] Furthermore, in a specific implementation, the wings provided in this embodiment of the present invention include a forewing 6 and a hindwing 7. The wingplate 5 includes a front wingplate 51 and a rear wingplate 52 connected by a flexible hinge 50. The forewing 6 is connected to the front wingplate 51, and the hindwing 7 is connected to the rear wingplate 52. The front wingplate 51 is engaged with the left rudder arm 11 and the right rudder arm 12 respectively. Specifically, the forewing 6 and the hindwing 7 are connected by a flexible hinge 50 to simulate the phase difference flapping of natural butterfly wings.
[0027] Furthermore, in a specific implementation, the forewing 6 provided in this embodiment of the present invention includes a skeleton composed of a front edge wing vein 61, a side edge wing vein 62, a rear edge wing vein 63, and a middle wing vein 64, and a forewing membrane 65 covering the skeleton. One end of the front edge wing vein 61, the rear edge wing vein 63, and the middle wing vein 64 all converge and connect to the forewing plate 51. The other end of the front edge wing vein 61 and the other end of the middle wing vein 64 converge at the middle of the side edge wing vein 62. One end of the side edge wing vein 62 converges at the middle of the front edge wing vein 61, and the other end of the side edge wing vein 62 connects to the other end of the rear edge wing vein 63. The hindwing 7 includes a hindwing vein 71 and a hindwing membrane 72 covering the hindwing vein 71. The hindwing vein 71 is connected end-to-end to the hind wing plate 52. Specifically, the forewing vein 61, side vein 62, rear vein 63, central vein 64, and hind wing vein 71 are all constructed from 0.8mm carbon fiber tubing, featuring high specific stiffness, fatigue resistance, and light weight. The forewing membrane 65 and hind wing membrane 72 are primarily composed of 0.0125mm PET film, exhibiting high tensile strength and dimensional stability. The skeleton of the forewing 6 and the outline and vein distribution of the hind wing vein 71 of the hind wing 7 are modeled after the blue morpho butterfly (scientific name: Morpho Menelaus). It should be noted that the outline of the forewing 6 is composed of the forewing vein 61, a portion of the side vein 62, and the rear vein 63, allowing the entire forewing membrane 65 to bear stress, forming a strong leading-edge vortex. The addition of a central vein 64 in the center of the forewing 6 prevents excessive deformation of the wing surface during flapping, as the active wing. The hindwing 7 is sealed by the hindwing vein 71, so that the entire hindwing membrane 72 can bear the force. Since the hindwing 7 is a driven wing, there is no need to set a central reinforcing vein, thus reducing the weight of the hindwing 7.
[0028] Furthermore, in specific implementation, the forewing plate 51 and rearwing plate 52 provided in this utility model embodiment are both made of PLA material by 3D printing. They are lightweight, fatigue-resistant, and are made of rigid material, which allows the forewing plate 51 to better transmit force to the entire forewing 6 through the front edge wing vein 61, the rear edge wing vein 63 and the middle wing vein 64, and to drive the entire rearwing 7 through the rear wing vein 71.
[0029] Furthermore, in specific implementations, the flexible hinge 50 provided in this embodiment is made of thermoplastic polyurethane rubber, which is flexible and lightweight, and can be applied to 3D printing technology, possessing the characteristics of low cost and good plasticity. The flexible hinge 50 connects the front wing plate 51 and the rear wing plate 52, enabling a flexible connection between the forewing 6 and the hindwing 7. During flight, it generates an asymmetrical flapping trajectory similar to that of a natural butterfly, reducing energy waste and extending flight endurance. Specifically, during the downward flapping motion, the forewing 6 drives the hindwing 7 to flap downwards via the flexible hinge 50, maximizing the windward area. During the upward flapping motion, because the hindwing 7 is below the forewing 6 and the connection is flexible, a phase difference is generated between the upward flapping motion of the forewing 6 and the hindwing 7, causing the windward area to gradually decrease. Thus, with each upward and downward flapping motion, the total windward area of the biomimetic butterfly's wings first increases and then gradually decreases, completing one cycle. When the wings of the butterfly-inspired flexible flapping-wing aircraft flap downwards, the total frontal area of the forewings (6) and hindwings (7) is the entire wing surface, which helps to increase the peak lift. This allows the wings to generate a greater total lift during the downward flapping process, thus satisfying the high-lift mechanism requirements of biomimetic butterflies. Similarly, when the wings of the biomimetic butterfly flap upwards, the total frontal area of the forewings (6) and hindwings (7) gradually decreases, which helps to reduce drag and ultimately allows the wings to generate a greater total lift during the upward flapping process. This connection method mimics the hinged wing joints of natural butterflies, improving flight performance while making the flight attitude of the butterfly-inspired flexible flapping-wing aircraft more closely resemble that of a natural butterfly.
[0030] Furthermore, in a specific implementation, the gear set 3 provided in this utility model embodiment includes a primary gear 31, a secondary double gear 32, a first tertiary gear 33, and a second tertiary gear 34. The primary gear 31 is coaxially connected to the brushless motor 13. The primary gear 31 meshes with the large gear of the secondary double gear 32. The first tertiary gear 33 meshes with the small gear of the second double gear. The second tertiary gear 34 meshes with the first tertiary gear 33. The first tertiary gear 33 is connected to the left rudder arm 11 through a first connecting rod 35. One end of the first connecting rod 35 is eccentrically rotatably connected to the first tertiary gear 33, and the other end of the first connecting rod 35 is rotatably connected to the movable swing end of the left rudder arm 11. The second tertiary gear 34 is connected to the right rudder arm 12 through a second connecting rod 36. One end of the second connecting rod 36 is eccentrically rotatably connected to the second tertiary gear 34, and the other end of the second connecting rod 36 is rotatably connected to the movable swing end of the right rudder arm 12. Specifically, the first and third stage gears 33 serve as the driving wheel after speed reduction and torque amplification, while the second and third stage gears 34 serve as the driven wheel after speed reduction and torque amplification. Through the three-stage speed reduction of the first stage gear 31, the second stage double gear 32, and the first and third stage gears 33, the high speed of the brushless motor 13 is converted into a large torque output, and the power is transmitted to the rudder arm through the connecting rod, matching the flapping frequency of butterflies in nature.
[0031] Furthermore, in a specific implementation, the steering mechanism 2 provided in this embodiment of the present invention includes a base plate 21 and an electromagnetic rudder 22 disposed on the base plate 21. The base plate 21 has a square hole that is interference-fitted with the frame 10. Specifically, a rearwardly extending carbon fiber square tube is disposed on the base plate 21, and the carbon fiber square tube is interference-fitted with the square hole on the base plate 21. At the same time, the carbon fiber square tube can also achieve a certain elastic deformation, so that the distance between the tail end and the nose end is reduced during horizontal flight, making the mass distribution of the whole machine more concentrated, reducing the moment of inertia, and improving the stability of flight. It should be noted that, by imitating the steering method of the monarch butterfly (scientific name: Monarch butterfly), the electromagnetic rudder 22 can make the power supply 4 swing left and right, thereby changing the center of gravity during flight and thus changing the flight attitude to achieve steering. The specific electromagnetic rudder 22 consists of a shell, a magnet, and an electromagnetic coil. By changing the direction of the current, the left and right directions of the electromagnetic rudder 22 can be changed. By changing the magnitude of the current, the magnitude of the left or right movement can be changed. The response delay is 1-10ms, which makes the response rapid, making the steering flexible and the amplitude controllable. It can achieve a 90° turn in a narrow space.
Claims
1. A flexible-winged ornithopter in the form of a butterfly, characterized in that, The machine body and wings arranged symmetrically on both sides of the machine body; The machine body comprises a driving mechanism (1) and a steering mechanism (2), the driving mechanism (1) comprises a rack (10) and left and right rudder arms (11) and (12) respectively connected to the rack (10), a brushless motor (13) is arranged on the rack (10), the brushless motor (13) is in transmission connection with the left and right rudder arms (11) and (12) through a gear set (3) to realize the up and down swing of the left and right rudder arms (11) and (12) at the same frequency, the steering mechanism (2) is fixed to the rack (10) and swings left and right to change the center of gravity of the machine body to realize steering, and the swinging end of the steering mechanism (2) is connected with a power supply (4) in electrical connection with the brushless motor (13) and the steering mechanism (2). The wings are connected with the left and right rudder arms (11) and (12) through wing panels (5).
2. A butterfly winged flexible wing ornithopter according to claim 1, wherein, The wings comprise front wings (6) and rear wings (7), the wing panels (5) comprise front wing plates (51) and rear wing plates (52) connected through flexible hinges (50), the front wings (6) are connected with the front wing plates (51), the rear wings (7) are connected with the rear wing plates (52), and the front wing plates (51) are snap-fitted with the left and right rudder arms (11) and (12) respectively.
3. A butterfly winged flexible wing ornithopter according to claim 2, wherein, The front wings (6) comprise a skeleton composed of a front edge wing vein (61), a side edge wing vein (62), a rear edge wing vein (63) and a middle wing vein (64), and a front wing film (65) arranged in the skeleton, one end of the front edge wing vein (61), the rear edge wing vein (63) and the middle wing vein (64) is connected to the front wing plate (51), the other end of the front edge wing vein (61) and the other end of the middle wing vein (64) meet in the middle part of the side edge wing vein (62), one end of the side edge wing vein (62) meets the middle part of the front edge wing vein (61), and the other end of the side edge wing vein (62) is connected with the other end of the rear edge wing vein (63).
4. A butterfly winged flexible wing ornithopter according to claim 2, wherein, The rear wings (7) comprise a rear wing vein (71) and a rear wing film (72) arranged in the rear wing vein (71), and the rear wing vein (71) is connected at the head and tail to the rear wing plate (52).
5. The butterfly winged aircraft of claim 2, wherein, The front wing plate (51) and the rear wing plate (52) are both made of PLA material by 3D printing.
6. A butterfly winged flexible wing ornithopter according to claim 2, wherein, The flexible hinge (50) is made of thermoplastic polyurethane rubber material.
7. The butterfly winged aircraft of claim 1, wherein, The gear set (3) comprises a primary gear (31), a secondary double gear (32), a first tertiary gear (33) and a second tertiary gear (34), the primary gear (31) is coaxially connected with the brushless motor (13), the primary gear (31) is engaged with the large gear of the secondary double gear (32), the first tertiary gear (33) is engaged with the small gear of the second double gear, the second tertiary gear (34) is engaged with the first tertiary gear (33), the first tertiary gear (33) is connected with the left rudder arm (11) through a first connecting rod (35), one end of the first connecting rod (35) is eccentrically connected with the first tertiary gear (33), the other end of the first connecting rod (35) is rotatably connected with the movable swing end of the left rudder arm (11), the second tertiary gear (34) is connected with the right rudder arm (12) through a second connecting rod (36), one end of the second connecting rod (36) is eccentrically connected with the second tertiary gear (34), the other end of the second connecting rod (36) is rotatably connected with the movable swing end of the right rudder arm (12).
8. The butterfly winged aircraft of claim 1, wherein, The steering mechanism (2) comprises a base plate (21) and an electromagnetic rudder (22) arranged on the base plate (21), and a square hole is formed in the base plate (21) and is in interference fit with the rack (10).