Insect-Inspired Mechanical Resilience for Multicopters

Watch this drone fall apart on impact to safely dissipate energy -- and then instantly snap back together.   The “reassembly” occurs owing to rubber bands that hold the frame firmly together via tension forces exerted on key structural hard points.

Sources: S. Mintchev, S.D. De Rivas and D. Floreano. Insect-Inspired Mechanical Resilience for Multicopters, In IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters, 2017.