Steve Cho, Kevin Hu WF Green Research Proposal: Difference between revisions
Kevin Y. Hu (talk | contribs) (New page: Biomimicry a brief project overview - mimicking Herculese beetle to develop stronger machines capable of lifting and carrying more than current machines sufficient background informatio...) |
Kevin Y. Hu (talk | contribs) No edit summary |
||
| (7 intermediate revisions by the same user not shown) | |||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
Biomimicry | '''Biomimicry''' | ||
Brief project overview | |||
- mimicking | - mimicking the Hercules beetle to develop stronger machines capable of lifting and carrying heavier loads than current machines | ||
Background information | |||
- | - the Hercules beetle possesses exceptional strength, even for an insect | ||
- | - they can lift 100+ X bodyweight | ||
- able to walk with 40X bodyweight without expending much more energy than normal | |||
- current machines don’t even approach the strength of ants, much less the | |||
Research problem and goals | |||
- current machines don’t even approach the strength of ants, much less the Hercules beetle | |||
- obviously, the whole size-scale thing plays a role, but it is still worth looking into why the H beetle is much stronger than other similarly sized or even smaller insects | - obviously, the whole size-scale thing plays a role, but it is still worth looking into why the H beetle is much stronger than other similarly sized or even smaller insects | ||
- there | - there should be something special about the way the Hercules beetle is built that gives it its strength | ||
- utilizing this could lead to stronger and more efficient machinery for humans, potentially with small-scale design and potential scaleup | |||
Project details and methods | |||
- detailed full body scan of | - detailed full body scan of Hercules beetle and then use computer simulations to find points of stress under various loads and how the beetle compensates for those stresses | ||
- take live specimens and observe them under real life loads | - take live specimens and observe them under real life loads to verify simulations, potentially with mechano-sensing proteins | ||
- make machines based on what we find to replicate the strength and see how | - make machines based on what we find to replicate the strength and see how they compare to similar sized machines based on traditional technology | ||
Predicted outcomes | |||
- | - if everything goes well: capable of large construction machines that can lift significantly more than currently available, or manufacturing biomechanical limbs and armor suits capable of granting immense strength to wearers | ||
- if nothing does: need to come up with a different way to mimic these beetles because it is definitely worth pursuing | - if nothing does: need to come up with a different way to mimic these beetles because it is definitely worth pursuing | ||
- scanner machines, detailed | Resources needed | ||
- scanner machines, detailed observation equipment to identify the structure behind the Hercules beetle's function | |||
- beetles | - beetles | ||
- other insects | - other insects and small-scale machines for comparison | ||
- powerful computers for in silico stress loading | |||
References | |||
Eadie, L., Ghosh, T K. Biomimicry in textiles: past, present and potential. An overview. Journal of the Royal Society Interface 2011. 8(59):761-775. | |||
Guo, Z., Liu, W., Su, BL. Superhydrophobic surfaces: from natural to biomimetic to functional. Journal of Colloid and Interface Science 2011. 353(2): 335-355. | |||
Hsia, Y., Gnesa, E., Pacheco, R., Kohler, K., Jeffery, F., Vierra, C. Synthetic spider silk production on a laboratory scale. Journal of Visualized Experiments 2012. 65:e4191. | |||
Rassart, M., Colomer, J-F., Tabarrant, T., Vigneron, J P. Diffractive hygrochromic effect in the cuticle of the hercules beetle ''Dynastes hercules''. New Journal of Physics 2008. 10:1-14. | |||
Latest revision as of 15:10, 7 May 2013
Biomimicry
Brief project overview
- mimicking the Hercules beetle to develop stronger machines capable of lifting and carrying heavier loads than current machines
Background information
- the Hercules beetle possesses exceptional strength, even for an insect
- they can lift 100+ X bodyweight
- able to walk with 40X bodyweight without expending much more energy than normal
Research problem and goals
- current machines don’t even approach the strength of ants, much less the Hercules beetle
- obviously, the whole size-scale thing plays a role, but it is still worth looking into why the H beetle is much stronger than other similarly sized or even smaller insects
- there should be something special about the way the Hercules beetle is built that gives it its strength
- utilizing this could lead to stronger and more efficient machinery for humans, potentially with small-scale design and potential scaleup
Project details and methods
- detailed full body scan of Hercules beetle and then use computer simulations to find points of stress under various loads and how the beetle compensates for those stresses
- take live specimens and observe them under real life loads to verify simulations, potentially with mechano-sensing proteins
- make machines based on what we find to replicate the strength and see how they compare to similar sized machines based on traditional technology
Predicted outcomes
- if everything goes well: capable of large construction machines that can lift significantly more than currently available, or manufacturing biomechanical limbs and armor suits capable of granting immense strength to wearers
- if nothing does: need to come up with a different way to mimic these beetles because it is definitely worth pursuing
Resources needed
- scanner machines, detailed observation equipment to identify the structure behind the Hercules beetle's function
- beetles
- other insects and small-scale machines for comparison
- powerful computers for in silico stress loading
References
Eadie, L., Ghosh, T K. Biomimicry in textiles: past, present and potential. An overview. Journal of the Royal Society Interface 2011. 8(59):761-775.
Guo, Z., Liu, W., Su, BL. Superhydrophobic surfaces: from natural to biomimetic to functional. Journal of Colloid and Interface Science 2011. 353(2): 335-355.
Hsia, Y., Gnesa, E., Pacheco, R., Kohler, K., Jeffery, F., Vierra, C. Synthetic spider silk production on a laboratory scale. Journal of Visualized Experiments 2012. 65:e4191.
Rassart, M., Colomer, J-F., Tabarrant, T., Vigneron, J P. Diffractive hygrochromic effect in the cuticle of the hercules beetle Dynastes hercules. New Journal of Physics 2008. 10:1-14.
