The Microbat The "Microbat" Since the start of the project in 1998, MEMS Research has developed titanium-alloy and parylene wings, and demonstrated the first successful free flight of a battery-powered flapping-wing Micro Air Vehicle (MAV). The first successful flight lasted 18 seconds in April of 1999. MEMS Research continued to modify and improve the design of the Microbat. A radio transceiver and PLiON battery cells were developed and added. The latest prototype figure has achieved a new world record with the longest flight duration of 6 minutes and 17 seconds in November of 2001. A radio controlled Microbat has also been developed by Aerovironment, Inc. It weighs less than 1é2 ounce, but it's capable of 3-channel control on a single 50mAh Sanyo Ni-Cd battery. The Microbat runs on a 2-gram Namaki pager motor powering a ball-bearing-supported, 22:1 custom gearbox that drives two connecting rods. The rods ride on the crankshaft and ball bearings and drive the wings up and down. The Microbat is constructed mostly of Mylar film, with some Kevlar, foam and balsa. According to the team of engineers at Aerovironment, the Microbat makes turns with ease and can stay in the air for about 40 seconds. More information available at http://www.aerovironment.com