Harvard Makes Robot Bees [VIDEO]

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Bio-inspired bees made from stacks of carbon fiber are buzzing right off the production line at Harvard's Microrobotics Lab.

Why build robot insects? The new mass-production technique is a huge step forward in constructing high-power switches, optical systems and electromechanical devices. Earlier bug prototypes were carefully built by the researchers with glue and by hand, which was too tedious and error-prone.

It took years for the Harvard researchers, a part of the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, to develop the U.S. quarter-sized robots with flying capabilities. It was a difficult task to build something made out of so many metals, joints and scaffolding that could move organically.

"This takes what is a craft, an artisanal process, and transforms it for automated mass production," says Pratheev Sreetharan, who co-developed the technique with J. Peter Whitney.

The prototype is called the Monolithic Bee (or MoBee). These micro-robots, made from 18 layers of carbon fiber, Kapton, titanium, brass and ceramic within adhesive sheets, are capable of rising to bee form similar like a pop-up book. The science of the MoBee has huge implications for the creation of robots and devices in the future.

Tell us in the comments below what you would build with this mass-production robotic technique.