Pitch-angle feedback control of a Biologically Inspired flapping-wing microrobot

This paper presents the first experimental results on pitch-angle control of a flapping-wing microrobot. First, we describe a control method by which torques can be modulated to change the pitch orientation of the microrobot. The suitability of the proposed method is demonstrated through hardware-in-the-loop experiments, employing a static experimental setup capable of measuring instantaneous torques produced by enforced flapping patterns. Then, using the information learned from the static hardware-in-the-loop experiments, controlled pitch rotation experiments are performed. The pitch-angle is measured using a motion capture system. Compelling results are presented to validate the chosen approach.