SmartBird

[classicman]

One of the oldest dreams of mankind is to fly like a bird. Many, from Leonardo da Vinci to contemporary research teams, tried to decipher the flight of birds well enough to recreate it. Finally in 2011, the engineers at the German technology company, Festo, developed SmartBird, an avian robot that can take off and fly through the air by simply flapping its wings. In this video, Markus Fischer, Festo's head of corporate design, shows a live audience what SmartBird can do:



(You get an explanation and then the demonstration starts at about the 5:30 mark)

SmartBird was inspired by the herring gull, Larus argentatus. It's a bit larger than this gull species, with a two-metre wingspan and a carbon-fiber "skeleton" that weighs 450 grams (a bit more less than one pound). Like live birds, SmartBird's "torso" can flex, providing directional control. But unlike live birds, SmartBird's movements can be radio-controlled and monitored from afar.

But the most interesting thing (to my eyes) is how its wings move: as you'd expect, the wings move up and down -- generating lift -- but the wings also twist and flex in flight like those of a real bird. This torsion keeps the wing's leading edge pointed upwards during the upward stroke, so that the wing adopts a positive angle of attack. This smooth sequence of wing movements generates thrust.
Link

Pretty cool eh?