A robotics laboratory at the National University of Defence Technology (NUDT) in central China’s Hunan province has developed a mosquito-sized drone for covert military operations.
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NUDT researchers showed their work on different types of robots – from humanoid machines to tiny drones barely visible to the eye – in a report aired on CCTV 7, China Central Television’s military channel, on June 14.
“Here in my hand is a mosquito-like type of robot. Miniature bionic robots like this one are especially suited to information reconnaissance and special missions on the battlefield”, Liang Hexiang, a student at NUDT, told CCTV while holding up the drone between his fingers.
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In the video of the UAV, two tiny wings with a leaflike structure were attached to the sides of the stick-shaped drone body along with three hair-thin “legs”.
The report highlighting advances in robotics engineering also showed a prototype controlled via smartphone with four wings, two moving horizontally on each side of the body.
Their tiny size makes manufacturing this new type of drone challenging: sensors, power devices, control circuits and other elements must fit into an extremely limited space. It requires collaboration between various disciplines, such as the engineering of microscopic devices, materials science and bionics.
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The micro UAV Black Hornet, a palm-sized, helicopter-shaped drone developed in Norway, is widely used by armed forces around the globe today.