TU Delft gives a tiny drone whiskers so it can feel its way in the dark
Researchers built a drone with two touch-sensing whiskers. It followed walls and found exits in complete darkness.
Mice use whiskers to feel walls in the dark. Scientists gave a tiny drone two whiskers that work the same way. It is only an experiment for now.
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Why it matters
Small drones are too light for heavy cameras or lidar. Whiskers are a light way to sense walls.
Worth a look: drones that feel like a mouse.
The details
- The work comes from TU Delft and was published in Nature Communications.
- Each whisker is a 200 mm nitinol wire with three pressure sensors at its base.
- Touch is measured in under 2 milliseconds, with millimeter-level precision.
- The drone has two front whiskers, so it cannot sense obstacles at its sides.
- It must touch a wall first, so it cannot fly fast through unknown places. This is a research prototype.
Receipts
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