Most engineered small robots have maximum angular velocities of about 60 radians per second. If the aptly-named trap-jaw ant (Odontomachus brunneus) was capable of scoffing, then surely the insect would scoff at these mechanical weaklings. Trap-jaw ants use a spring-and-latch mechanism to snap their mandibles shut on prey at a blistering speed of 44,000 radians per second. Researchers reported these findings in a study published July 21 in the Journal of Experimental Biology using high-speed videos and mathematical modeling to finally reveal the biomechanics of this tiny animal’s blazing speed.
When the scientists measured the forces acting on the ant’s mandible and on the ligament that functions as a spring, they found a 50-50 distribution. The team initially hypothesized that this even split might optimize the power output of the mandibles, but the mathematical model the researchers developed to capture the rapid-fire event showed otherwise. That model suggested that the ...
