US engineers develop 3D-printed robot wings inspired by grasshoppers

Researchers at Princeton University have developed insect-scale robotic wings inspired by the American grasshopper’s unique flight mechanics to address the high power consumption challenges faced by tiny flying robots. Unlike traditional micro-robots modeled after bees that rely on continuous, energy-intensive flapping flight, grasshoppers utilize a combination of jumping, flapping, and energy-efficient gliding. The team focused on the grasshopper’s hindwings, which feature a corrugated “accordion-style” structure that provides both the strength needed for flapping and the ability to fold compactly for ground mobility. High-resolution CT scans and fluid dynamics testing in water channels helped optimize 3D-printed wings that matched the flight efficiency of real grasshoppers. Interestingly, while natural grasshopper wings are corrugated, the researchers found that smooth wings actually glided more efficiently in their experiments, suggesting that the corrugations serve structural purposes such as wing folding rather than aerodynamic optimization. The next challenge for the team is to develop a mechanism for automatic wing