bionics - History, Methods, Examples of biomimetics, Specific uses of the term

The construction of artificial mechanisms, models, circuits, or programs imitating the responses or behaviour of living systems. Its purpose is to adapt observed living functions to practical purposes in useful machines. It contrasts with cybernetics, which is concerned with the study of communication within the living system, and automation, which is concerned with the mere outward imitation of the appearance of living things.

Bionics (also known as biomimetics, biognosis, biomimicry, or bionical creativity engineering) is the application of methods and systems found in nature to the study and design of engineering systems and modern technology.

The transfer of technology between lifeforms and synthetic constructs is desirable because evolutionary pressure typically forces natural systems to become highly optimized and efficient. Examples of bionics in engineering include the hulls of boats imitating the thick skin of dolphins, sonar, radar, and medical ultrasound imaging imitating the echolocation of bats.

In the field of computer science, the study of bionics has produced cybernetics, artificial neurons, artificial neural networks, and swarm intelligence. Evolutionary computation was also motivated by bionics ideas but it took the idea further by simulating evolution in silico and producing well-optimized solutions that had never appeared in nature.

It is estimated by Julian Vincent, professor of biomimetics at the University of Bath in the UK, that "at present there is only a 10% overlap between biology and technology in terms of the mechanisms used".

History

The name biomimetics was coined by Otto Schmitt in the 1950s.

Methods

Often, the study of bionics emphasizes imitation of a biological structure rather than just an implementation of its function. For example, in computer science, cybernetics tries to model actual organic structures that make humans intelligent, while artificial intelligence tries to model the intelligent function regardless of the particular way it can be achieved.

The conscious copying of examples and mechanisms from natural organisms and ecologies is a form of applied case-based reasoning, treating nature itself as a database of solutions that already work.

Although almost all engineering could be said to be a form of biomimicry, the modern origins of this field are usually attributed to Buckminster Fuller and its later codification as a field of study to Janine Benyus.

Roughly, we can distinguish three biological levels in biology after which technology can be modelled:

Mimicking natural methods of manufacture of chemical compounds to create new ones Imitating mechanisms found in nature (velcro) Studying organizational principles from social behaviour of organisms, such as the flocking behaviour of birds or the emergent behaviour of bees and ants

Examples of biomimetics

Velcro is the most famous example of biomimetics. Leonardo da Vinci's flying machines and ships are early examples of drawing from nature in engineering. In order to change the shape and underlying structure of the aircraft wings, the researchers needed to make the overlying skin also be able to change, which their design does by covering the wings with fish-inspired scales that could slide over each other. Nanostructures and physical mechanisms that produce the shining color of butterfly wings were reproduced in silicon by Greg Parker, professor of Electronics and Computer Science at the University of Southampton and research student Luca Plattner in the field of photonics, which is electronics using photons as the information carrier instead of electrons.

Specific uses of the term

In business

The latest research by Phil Richardson at the Centre for Biomimetics at the University of Bath has shown that Biomimetic models can be used to create analogies in business.

Examples include the application of natural systems to solving complex data problems.

In medicine

Bionics is a term which refers to flow of ideas from biology to engineering and vice versa.

In medicine, Bionics means the replacement or enhancement of organs or other body parts by mechanical versions.

Bionics' German equivalent "Bionik" always takes the broader scope in that it tries to develop engineering solutions from biological models.

While the technologies that make bionic implants possible are still in a very early stage, a few bionic items already exist, the best known being the cochlear implant, a device for deaf people.

Kwabena Boahen from Ghana was a professor in the Department of Bioengineering at the University of Pennsylvania.

Science Fiction

Medical bionics are a common element in science fiction, with The Six Million Dollar Man a well-known example. Other examples from science fiction include many cyberpunk works, including Neuromancer, and the Luke Skywalker character from the Star Wars series of movies.

Politics

A political form of biomimcry is bioregional democracy, wherein political borders conform to natural ecoregions rather than human cultures or the outcomes of prior conflicts.

Critics of these approaches often argue that ecological selection itself is a poor model of minimizing manufacturing complexity or conflict, and that the free market relies on conscious cooperation, agreement, and standards as much as on efficiency - more analogous to sexual selection.

Advocates, especially in the anti-globalization movement, argue that the mating-like processes of standardization, financing and marketing, are already examples of runaway evolution - rendering a system that appeals to the consumer but which is inefficient at use of energy and raw materials.

Biomimicry is also the second principle of Natural Capitalism.

Bionic Hornet

In November 2006 the Israeli Deputy Prime Mister Shimon Peres announced plans to develop a tiny flying robot the size of hornet that would be able to chase, photograph and kill its targets.

Other uses

In a more specific meaning, it is a creativity technique that tries to use biological prototypes to get ideas for engineering solutions.

A less common and maybe more recent meaning of the term "bionics" refers to merging organism and machine.

See also: implant, prosthesis.