Biomimetic – WindowsTechs.com

Feathers are Fantastic, but Flummoxing for Engineers

Posted on August 30, 2025 by Navarre Bartz

An image of a pigeon on the left and a breakdown of six of the different kind of feathers on the bird. The bird's right wing is white with black dots and has an arrow pointing to it saying, "Developing wing with feather buds." The left wing is grey with one feather highlighted in pink with the text "Adult wing with feathers" at the end of an arrow pointing to it. The six feather types on the right side of the image are flight feathers, illustrated in pink with the text "enable flight, support aerodynamic loads, morph depending on flying style, building blocks for wing planaform." In green, we have tail feathers and the text "Maneuverability and controlability." In blue are the contour feathers, accompanied by the text, "streamline, camouflage, and sexual display. Found above filoplumes and semiplumes." A black floofy branched structure shows us the downy feathers next to the text "thermal insulation." Filoplumes and semiplumes look to be both thin and bushy feathers in black with the text "Sense underlying feathers, found above downy feathers." Finally, we have a black, stick-like bristle feather with the text "Protect face and eyes, sense surroundings."

Birds are pretty amazing creatures, and one of the most amazing things about them and their non-avian predecessors are feathers. Engineers and scientists are finding inspiration from them in surprising …read more Continue reading Feathers are Fantastic, but Flummoxing for Engineers→

Spider-Man-inspired sticky silk fibers lift 80 times their weight

Posted on October 11, 2024 by Paul McClure

It’s straight out of a comic book: a shot of liquid silk quickly hardens into a sticky, strong fiber that can lift objects 80 times heavier. Sound familiar? Researchers have described the Spider-Man-inspired tech in a new study.Continue ReadingCategory… Continue reading Spider-Man-inspired sticky silk fibers lift 80 times their weight→

Squid-skin-inspired screen displays encrypted images using only magnets

Posted on September 19, 2024 by Paul McClure

Inspired by the color-changing skin of squids and other cephalopods, researchers have developed a flexible screen capable of storing and displaying encrypted images without using electronics – just tiny magnetic particles.Continue ReadingCategory: Tech… Continue reading Squid-skin-inspired screen displays encrypted images using only magnets→

Room temperature metalworking inspired by insects and crab shells

Posted on August 19, 2024 by Michael Irving

Metalworking usually requires very high heat and pressure, but scientists in Singapore have now demonstrated a way to make very pure metal structures at room temperature. It’s inspired by the exoskeletons of crabs and insects.Continue ReadingCategory: … Continue reading Room temperature metalworking inspired by insects and crab shells→

A Robot Face with Human Skin

Posted on July 26, 2024 by Navarre Bartz

On the left, a transluscent yellowy-tan android head with eyes set behind holes in the face. On the right, a bright pink circle with small green eyes. It is manipulated into the image of a smiling face via its topography.

Many scifi robots have taken the form of their creators. In the increasingly blurry space between the biological and the mechanical, researchers have found a way to affix human skin …read more Continue reading A Robot Face with Human Skin→

Flexures Make Robotic Fingers Simpler to Print

Posted on July 16, 2024 by Dan Maloney

Designing an anthropomorphic robotic hand seems to make a lot of sense — right up until the point that you realize just how complex the human hand is. What works …read more Continue reading Flexures Make Robotic Fingers Simpler to Print→

Shell-inspired cement 19x more flexible thanks to ‘engineered defects’

Posted on June 13, 2024 by Paul McClure

Nature is known for developing lightweight yet tough materials using limited, modest materials arranged into ingenious architecture. Take nacre, for example. More commonly known as mother of pearl, the shiny inner lining of some mollusks’ shells is an … Continue reading Shell-inspired cement 19x more flexible thanks to ‘engineered defects’→

Tentacle Robot Wants to Hold You Gently

Posted on May 24, 2024 by Navarre Bartz

Twelve pink tentacles are wrapped around a small, green succulent plant. The leaves seem relatively undisturbed. They are dangling from brass and white plastic pressure fittings attached to a brass circle.

Human hands are remarkable pieces of machinery, so it’s no wonder many robots are designed after their creators. The amount of computation required to properly attenuate the grip strength and …read more Continue reading Tentacle Robot Wants to Hold You Gently→

Biomimetic propeller brings whale-like flow to hubless marine e-drive

Posted on April 5, 2024 by C.C. Weiss

French electric marine drive specialist BlueNav is preparing to put a more natural spin in its lineup. The all-new Whale Design propeller features blades that follow the contours of a whale to improve system efficiency. The unique propeller is set to d… Continue reading Biomimetic propeller brings whale-like flow to hubless marine e-drive→

The Six Million Dollar Jellyfish

Posted on March 2, 2024 by Navarre Bartz

An illustration of jellyfish swimming in the ocean by Rebecca Konte. The jellyfish are wearing cones on their "heads" to streamline their swimming that contain some sort of electronics inside.

What if you could rebuild a jellyfish: better, stronger, faster than it was before? Caltech now has the technology to build bionic jellyfish. Studying the ocean given its influence on …read more Continue reading The Six Million Dollar Jellyfish→