Liftoff of a 190 mg Laser-Powered Aerial Vehicle: The Lightest Wireless Robot to Fly

Abstract

To date, insect scale aerial robots have required wire tethers for providing power due to the challenges of integrating the required high-voltage power electronics within their severely constrained weight budgets. In this paper we present a significant milestone in the achievement of flight autonomy: the first wireless liftoff of a 190 mg aerial vehicle. Our robot is remotely powered using a 976 nm laser and integrates a complete power electronics package weighing a total of 104 mg, using commercially available components and fabricated using a fast-turnaround laser based circuit fabrication technique. The onboard electronics include a lightweight boost converter capable of producing high voltage bias and drive signals of over 200 V at up to 170 Hz and regulated by a microcontroller performing feedback control. We present our system design and analysis, detailed description of our fabrication method, and results from flight experiments.