Japanese researcher unveils 'hummingbird robot'

Japanese researchers have developed a robotic bird that can movefreely in the air with rapid wing movement. Robot bird has a sizesimilar to a real bird Hummingbird, equipped with micro motors and four wings that can flaps 30 times per second, said HiroshiLiu, a researcher at the University of Chiba east of Tokyo.

Professor Hiroshi Ryu of Japan's Chiba University displays his flying robot, which flaps its wings 30 times per second like a hummingbird, at his laboratory in Chiba city, suburban Tokyo, December 28.

This unique robot has a weight of 2.6 gram, can fly 8 times morestable than a helicopter with propeller. This bird robot is controlled by infrared sensors and can move up, down, right or left.

Hiroshi Liu plans to make it float to rest at one point in the air, andequip it with a micro camera in March 2011.

This robot development cost 200 million yen ($ 2.1 million), can be used to help rescue people trapped in damaged buildings, looking for criminals or even operate as a vehicle probe on Mars.