Increased flight agility by micro air vehicles is the goal of a University of Oxford bird performance study funded by the US Air Force Research Laboratory.
To better understand bird flight in order to improve MAV agility, Oxford's animal behaviour research group is using high-speed and stereo-vision cameras to capture the changing airfoil shape of a falcon in free flight. A falcon was trained to fly down an instrumented corridor with six cameras set up to take pictures simltaneously of the upper and lower surfaces of the bird's wing.
"The researchers used stereo-vision analysis techniques to derive a three-dimensional mapping of the wing from the images," says AFRL. "This data will enable engineers to study not only the shape of the bird's wing, but also the morphing that occurs during manoeuvres."
Morphing is the changing of the wing's shape in mid-flight. Micro cameras and remote connection technology are enabling researchers to attach wireless camera packs to birds to observe innate flight responses. Observations so far include use of the bird's "covert feathers" during certain manoeuvres - a mechanism similar to leading-edge slats deployment - head movements in co-ordination with turns, and wing bending for flight control.
Source: Flight International