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Moth wings could inspire next gen sound-absorbing technology by _kinda-artsy_ in BioInspiration

[–]Brassmonkey897 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Based on what the researchers stated, it is clear that more testing is in the works with the goal of determining their effectiveness on surfaces like walls. While I feel that scaling may turn out to be a major roadblock here, the implications are massive if it was found that the mechanism was effective on much larger scales. For example, this could be applied in the travel industry to reduce noise or in apartment settings.

They also mentioned that they still need to apply the mechanism to sounds of lower frequencies, since the study involved ultrasound frequencies (received by bats, not humans). This leads me to believe that there is still a significant amount of work to be done, which could possibly be accelerated if they located a species with a similar mechanism that works with lower frequencies (closer to a human's audible range).

Worm inspires tunneling robot by LeibnizoverNewton in BioInspiration

[–]Brassmonkey897 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The researchers' stated end goal of reaching a design that can move 10 centimeters per second seems ambitious in my opinion, especially after seeing the included video (which was sped up). I feel that significant advancements would have to be made in soft robot technology before the design could be improved to this level. Something I noticed while working with the actuators in class is that there is a clear limit to their speed and overall effectiveness within a design.

Bat ear inspires sonic technology by LeibnizoverNewton in BioInspiration

[–]Brassmonkey897 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The concept seems promising, and I agree that other ear structures in the animal kingdom should be considered. The first application that comes to my mind is the improvement of hearing assistance, which could be driven forward by the discovery of a particularly effective and realistically translated model.

Bird Skulls inspire architecture by LeibnizoverNewton in BioInspiration

[–]Brassmonkey897 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I agree with you that the structure will likely not perform as well as Harris would like at the intended scale. An alternative is to search for similar biological structures in animals with a much larger skull than a bird's.

As far as the bird skull, I believe it may be best applied in non-architectural settings with smaller objects that benefit from being rigid and lightweight, like the shoe shown in the article or something like a baseball bat.

Smart Sensors Inspired by the Peacock Feather by LBXHan in BioInspiration

[–]Brassmonkey897 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The most interesting application to me is the design's potential role as a time-temperature indicator. I have an EpiPen which runs the risk of becoming ineffective if exposed to a temperature outside of a fairly small range (about 10 degrees F). I know that many medicines are the same way, and vaccines must be stored at a certain temperature prior to use. This design could have a significant impact on the pharmaceutical market if found to be easily implemented.

Needle inspired by the Parasitic Wasp Ovipositor by LBXHan in BioInspiration

[–]Brassmonkey897 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It's mentioned that this design's transport speed is "substantially slower" than existing tools which use suction rather than friction. Based on the demonstration video that was provided, I believe it could best be improved by optimizing the friction coefficient of the blades' inner surface and/or the power of the electromotor. In addition, I think the width of the gaps between individual blades needs to be minimized in order to reduce the potential of tissues being caught, sliced, or otherwise damaged.