As long as it's not like the TV series Black Mirror! Festo presented a swarm of bionic bees at Hannover Messe

At the end of April, the annual Hannover Messe trade fair took place in Hannover, Germany, where Festo held its traditional presentation of the Bionic Learning Network.

Festo is known for presenting robots whose shape and design are inspired by the natural environment. For example, at previous Hannover Messe exhibitions, the developers demonstrated robots modelled on an ant, a kangaroo and an octopus.

This year, Festo designers decided to get off the ground and take to the air.

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This time, the public was presented with a bionic bee, which easily rises into the air and coordinates with its fellow bees.

Each "insect" BionicBee is an autonomous robot that weighs 34 grams, is 220 mm long and has a wingspan of 240 mm. It is the smallest product ever created by Festo.

The BionicBee navigates by means of beacons and its actions are processed by a single computer, so that the "insects" can swarm together to perform coordinated actions.

Each bee is made of ultra-lightweight materials and is equipped with a brushless motor, a battery, a servo drive to control the wings and communication technology to ensure the swarm works together.

Of course, you can't expect honey from such bees, but they are a perfect demonstration of innovative ideas and out-of-the-box thinking, as well as the desire for progress and the development of humanity's capabilities.

Festo CEO Denis Mugrauer said that although not all of the company's ideas have real applications, some of their concepts do help to find innovative solutions in the fields of energy efficiency, alternative energy sources and ultra-lightweight construction.

Source: Festo