Measurement of Vibrational Stiffness and Air Damping of Damselfly Wings

A simple cantilever beam vibration test method made of biomorph and insect wing, were used to measure the vibrational stiffness and the air damping of insect wings. Vibration tests were performed in vacuum pressures to atmosphere and the wing stiffness and air damping factor were measured. The test method was found to be a viable method for measuring wing stiffness, natural frequencies and mode shapes. The vibrational deformation of the insect wings was found to be combination of bending and torsion because of unsymmetrical geometry of wing. The measured stiffness (K) of damselfly wings varied from 0.18 to 0.31 N/m and the air damping ratio ranged from 0.72 to 0.79. The undamped natural frequency (fn) at 13 kPa varied from 249 to 299 Hz and at atmosphere it varied from 168 to 198 Hz.