Aurelia aurita bio-inspired tilt sensor

作者：Smith Colin^*; Villanueva Alex; Priya Shashank

来源：Smart Materials and Structures, 2012, 21(10): 105015.

DOI：10.1088/0964-1726/21/10/105015

The quickly expanding field of mobile robots, unmanned underwater vehicles, and micro-air vehicles urgently needs a cheap and effective means for measuring vehicle inclination. Commonly, tilt or inclination has been mathematically derived from accelerometers; however, there is inherent error in any indirect measurement. This paper reports a bio-inspired tilt sensor that mimics the natural balance organ of jellyfish, called the %26apos;statocyst%26apos;. Biological statocysts from the species Aurelia aurita were characterized by scanning electron microscopy to investigate the morphology and size of the natural sensor. An artificial tilt sensor was then developed by using printed electronics that incorporates a novel voltage divider concept in conjunction with small surface mount devices. This sensor was found to have minimum sensitivity of 4.21 degrees with a standard deviation of 1.77 degrees. These results open the possibility of developing elegant tilt sensor architecture for both air and water based platforms.

• 出版日期2012-10
• 单位美国弗吉尼亚理工大学(Virginia Tech)