Bionics

Bionics (also biomimicry, biomimetics or Biomimese ) deals with passing phenomena of nature to technology. The oldest known example of Leonardo da Vinci's idea of ​​transferring the flight of birds on flying machines. The most common example of the modern life is inspired by burrs velcro. The Bionics is based on the assumption that the biota through evolutionary processes optimized structures and processes developed, from which humans can learn.

As an interdisciplinary research field attracts the bionics scientists and engineers, architects, philosophers and designers. The Bionics it comes to systematic identification of solutions of animated nature; it sets itself thus on the purposeless nature inspiration. Your goal is always separate from the natural technical object or process. Thus, the bionics of sciences that use biological processes and expand as bioinformatics, biophysics and biochemistry is different.

Concept formation and history

The English term bionics presented for the first time, the American Air Force Major Jack E. Steele in 1960 at a conference under the direction of Heinz von Foerster at the Wright - Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio, before: Bionics Symposium: Living Prototypes - The Key to New Technology '. J. E. Steele, a neurologist in military service, derives the term from the Greek root "bios " (life) and the suffix " - onics " in the meaning " study of " from. - The German portmanteau word bionics is composed of biology and technology.

In the English -speaking world, the importance of bionic mostly limited to the construction of body parts or - more generally - a combination of biology and electronics ( also related to the idea of the cyborg ). That which is known in the German-speaking world with bionics corresponds, in English rather the term biomimetics or biomimicry. Since many authors are aware of the linguistic problem, the two terms bionics and biomimetics are often used interchangeably now.

As historical pioneers of the Italian inventor of bionics Leonardo da Vinci is often cited in the manuscript About the flight of birds the flight of birds analyzed in 1505 and tried to transmit his findings on flying machines. The first German patent in the field of bionics in 1920 Raoul Heinrich Francé granted for a "new spreader " on the model of a poppy capsule. 1948 developed the swiss scientist George de Mestral after the model of the burrs velcro.

As a milestone in the history of bionics applies Ingo computing Berg 1964 held lecture entitled: " Cybernetic solution driving an experimental research project ". Here he led before the Darwin - in - wind-tunnel experiment in which a folded to zigzag shape hinge plate evolutionarily developed for planar shape least resistance.

Development and differentiation

Bionics has developed only in recent decades, particularly due to new and improved methods ( computer performance, production processes, interdisciplinary considerations) to an established scientific discipline. With the development of technical functional elements engineers parallel developments in nature were not always known. Thus, the framework was developed without knowledge of the fine structure of the trabeculae. Since no transfer took place, one speaks in such formal or functional similarities of correspondences and not of bionics.

Biomimetics or bionics as a scientific discipline on the other hand is looking for specific structures in nature which may be as models of industrial importance. This approach can often be referred to as a pure analogy search. However, it does often only small leaps in innovation, since the technical application must be visible already.

Alternatively, certain structural or organizational principles can be described which are only then recognized as suitable for transmission to the technology through basic biological research. Thus, new truss structures are developed ( eg strengthening of double wall construction ) as the basis of the examination of the bone structure. Also led evidence on the non-wettability and self-cleaning surfaces of certain vegetable later to the development of various industrial products such as exterior paint, roof tiles and awnings with the so-called lotus effect and aerodynamics searched many suggestions in zoology.

The Bionic Learning Network is a research network of the company Festo with universities, institutes and development companies. The aim of the initiative is to bring about through the application of bionics novel technology support.

Bionics can be divided into various sub- areas: the design bionics compares construction elements and their integration, the sensor Biomimicry examines the systems for reception of stimuli, the Structural bionics analyzed biological structure elements, the movement bionics drive mechanisms, surface influence and flow adjustment, neurobionics observed natural information transfer and transfer to informatic systems, the Baubionik investigated complete structures of living organisms or their products, the devices bionics brings a natural device structures to which method bionics presents at analytical study of biological processes such as photosynthesis, the air bionics looking for systems for passive ventilation, cooling or heating, the Anthropobionik studied animal movements, often for use in robotics, bionics evolutionary transmits evolution process on research (experimental trial - error - development).

Basic Procedure

In the analog Bionics is a "top -down process " instead: One defines the problem, looking for analogies in nature, analyzes these analogies, and finally searches for solutions to the problem with the lessons learned from nature. Examples:

• Aircraft: Otto Lilienthal and the Wright brothers were watching the flight ( locomotion ) large birds, and thus optimized their prototypes: Fruit of the meadow Bock Barts
• Winglets on the ends of the wings of airplanes: large vortices at the wingtips of aircraft require a high fuel consumption, which can be reduced through the use of winglets around five to six percent. Investigation of wings a sailing / gliding birds as an aircraft analogy. Description of the primaries of certain bird species (about buzzards, condors and eagles ), which takes a gnd thus consume less energy overall. Production of artificial wings with multiple vortex shedding structures ( winglets ). Aircraft designers have the winglets to a loop profile at the trailing edge (split -wing loop) further developed ( Spiroid ). The example shows that at the end of their bionic optimization derivation need not be always visible.
• Development of novel profiles of tires: biological model are about cats paws widen when changing direction and so have a greater contact area with the ground.
• Spider -like robot, whose legs have autonomous control functions and are thus far superior centrally controlled robots.

In the abstraction Bionics is a "bottom-up " process instead: It operates to basic biological research, examines the biomechanics and functional morphology of biological systems, identifies and describes an underlying principle, leads an abstraction of this principle ( separation from the biological model and translation in non- specialist language ) by, looking for possible technical applications, and finally developed such applications together with engineers, technicians, designers, etc. Examples:

• Unwettability and self-cleaning of certain biological surfaces: The observation and further investigation of the fact that from a leaf of the lotus plant practically run off all water-soluble substances, resulted in patents for extremely low wetting and self-cleaning surface structures (such as for a new artificial surface as a façade color), the lotus effect. See also: Waxes on plant leaves, for example, of the lotus flower, turnip etc.
• Structural optimization of components (CAO and SKO ): growth forms of trees or bone
• Riblet films: For fast- swimming sharks skin surface consists of small, closely placed scales. On these scales are sharp fine grooves that are aligned parallel to the flow. These microscopic grooves cause a reduction in frictional resistance. This widerstandsvermindernde effect is effective in all turbulent flows, including in air. Aircraft can be covered with a special film (called riblet film) which has on its top a similar structure and thus lowering the drag of the aircraft. The scientific basis comes from studies of fossil sharks and their " shed ".
• The velcro was developed along the lines of velcro fruit ( George de Mestral, 1956).
• Swarm intelligence and ant algorithm transfer behaviors of insects and other living in community groups or large animals in technical areas.

Examples of correspondences technology / natural

• Suckers also occur in octopus and beetles.
• Sonar or echo sounder was, long before man knew it, used by dolphins and bats.
• Slats of aircraft: Daumenfittich of the bird's wing
• Propeller: fruit of the maple leaf
• Flying wing: along the lines of flight of semen Zanonia macrocarpa
• Syringes: sting of bees or hornets
• Swim fin: webbed feet in frogs and waterfowl
• Jet engine: recoil principle in jellyfish and cuttlefish
• Atrapanieblas: fog using the fog drinker Beetle
• Ventilation system: Ventilation system in a termite mound
• Hydrophobicity and hydrophilicity of the fog drinker Beetle inspired the construction of a self -filling with water bottle.