Artificial Pollination By Robobees

Posted: 6/28/2019

The age of artificial pollination may have arrived!

“And with that, Harvard University’s Robobee became the lightest vehicle ever to achieve sustained untethered flight. … creating extremely lightweight power circuits, and integrating high-efficiency solar cells” (S1)

“In all, the final vehicle, with the solar cells and electronics, weighs 259 milligrams (about a quarter of a paper clip) and uses about 120 milliwatts of power” (S1)

However, the robobee may not yet be capable of flying outdoors. So we have to wait a bit longer!

Sources (S):

1. The Robobee flies solo / To achieve untethered flight, the latest iteration of the Robobee underwent several important changes, including the addition of a second pair of wings. (published 6/26/19)

Tiny robot bee powered by light takes flight Machine carries ultra-lightweight solar cells — and weighs less than a paper clip (published 6/26/19)