It appears in spite of several attempts we cannot imitate a Bird in flight?

Question

Interesting to know how many times a second a Bird flaps its wings.Does it also pulsate its body in rhythm to its wings.Is it right to assume we will never be able to get it right.

Answer 1

God made the birds. Men made the plane

Answer 2

not necessarily. Just think. Before, Mankind thought that it was impossible to excess the 50 mph limit. Now we're going over 700! Or at least I think that that's how it goes, I'm not really sure. I saw it on a movie once. lol. But no really.
Anything is possible if you try hard enough and you have the will. Still. A bird in flight is a remarkable thing to watch.

I wonder if we will be able to imitate a bird in flight someday...

-great question.

Answer 3

There is one major hurdle in designing flying machines that imitate birds. To see what it is, consider this -
Most of the current flying machines rely on thrust produced by a propeller / jet. Compare this to flight of a bird, it just flaps it's wings.

Now if we could design wings that can be flapped (and controlled) like those of birds, we can imitate birds.

To do this we'd need a power source that acts like muscles (instead of just providing unidirectional thrust). There is research going on artificial muscles (electroactive polymers) and once these are perfected and mass produced we'd have flying machines that imitate birds, till then we have to live with roary engines!

Answer 4

Birds have too many moving parts. In birds, the wing flaps up and down. This wing provides lift and thrust.
In aircraft design, moving parts requires a lot of joints and hydraulics. All these things add weight which in turn requires more lift and thrust. More lift results in more drag and this equates to more fuel burn.
For example, the folding wings used in carrier-based aircraft are quite heavy.
We have learned that it is more economic to have a fixed wing with a separate propulsion system.

Answer 5

I think that we have advanced ourself to the point where imitating a bird no longer matters. Aerodynamic designs with computer avionics make even the flying wing possible. New skydiving windsuits make "flying" possible. There is even a guy experimenting with personal jet packs! Todays technology looks at a bird and says, "That's been done. Let's do it better!"

Answer 6

The feathers on a bird's wings act as one way valves As the bird's wings travel up the feathers rotate and separate to let the air through. As the wing's beat downward the feathers close up to block air flow and the birds lifts itself up above the air below it. A birds gliding is similar to a planes wing as the air flow across it produces lift.

Answer 7

Its not that we cannot reach there, but it takes a damn lot of efforts and a few geniuses to get there.

Birds are able to fly, after several centuries of evolution. And we shouldnot expect to design flying machines like them just in 100 years, after we had a first flight.

But its not impossible!!! someday sure we will be there, right along a flying bird.

Answer 8

It's finally been done. A former professor of mine at the University of Toronto (Canada) finally created the world's first flying man-carrying ornithopter (aircraft with flapping wings). It flew into the record books on 8th July 2006.

http://www.utias.utoronto.ca/site4.aspx
and under "What's New" click on "First Piloted Ornithopter Flight".

Answer 9

Yes. Birds also have hollow bones to save weight, ours are solid. Birds have a very fast metabolism to get oxygen to the muscles. And the muscles under your arms and around your ribs would have to be about a foot thick.

Answer 10

i used to have a plastic toy bird years ago that was run on elastic bands. you had to wind its head around a few time and then chuck it into the air. then it would flap its wings and fly around until the elastic band had wound down.

since then i have not seen anything else like it.