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About

Mark Jankauski is a leading researcher in the biomechanics and engineering of insect flight, with a focus on the structural dynamics that enable flapping-wing locomotion. His work bridges biology and robotics, investigating how the flexible wings and thorax of flying insects deform during flight to enhance aerodynamic performance and energetic efficiency. Jankauski’s major contributions include demonstrating that structural deformation in flapping wings significantly affects flight energetics—a finding with 36 citations—and revealing that the insect thoracic cuticle is heterogeneous, with thickness-dependent modulus gradation (24 citations). His modeling of flexible wing-thorax systems (14 citations) directly informs the design of flapping-wing micro air vehicles (FWMAVs), addressing key challenges like inefficient energetics and limited payload capacity. Notably, he has developed methods to reconstruct full-field wing dynamics from sparse measurements (7 citations), a critical step for studying real insect flight. Jankauski’s work is foundational for advancing bio-inspired robotics and deepening our understanding of insect flight mechanics.