This work explores the viability of using 3D printing as a rapid-prototyping technique for microrobotic appendages made from thin-film PZT/polymer materials. First, the possibility of integrating piezoelectric materials into millimeter-scale (meso-scale) polymer melt-printed structures was investigated. Next, one specific robot limb geometry was chosen as a basis to compare structural modeling ...

Formation flying is an enabling technique for numerous proposed satellite missions. The TeamAgent software system, based on ObjectAgent technology, is designed to enable multiple satellites to cooperate autonomously with particular focus on formation flying. A generalized agent-based software architecture for formation flying has been devised and is being applied to the Air Force Research Labor...

Highly pathogenic (HP) H5N1 avian influenza (AI) is enzootic in several countries of Asia and Africa and constitutes a major threat, at the world level, for both animal and public health. Ducks play an important role in the epidemiology of AI, including HP H5N1 AI. Although vaccination can be a useful tool to control AI, duck vaccination has not proved very efficient in the field, indicating a ...

The performances and economics of crossbred (White Pekin × Khaki Campbell) ducks produced through artificial insemination reared under extensive system management were studied. A total 150 day old ducklings randomly distributed to six farmers in three villages (25 number each) Odisha state they guided maintain the birds with resources available them. brooded for ten days during which offered bo...

Current control strategies for avian influenza virus, exotic Newcastle disease, and other highly virulent poultry diseases often include surveillance, quarantine, depopulation, disposal, and disinfection. On-farm depopulation and disposal methods reduce potential movement of virus and improve biosecurity. Water-based foam depopulation was developed as a potential alternative mass emergency poul...

Elastic filamentous structures found on swimming and flying organisms are versatile in function, rendering their precise contribution to locomotion difficult to assess. We show in this Letter that a single passive filament hinged on the rear of a bluff body placed in a stream can generate a net lift force without increasing the mean drag force on the body. This is a consequence of spontaneous s...

The effect of host age on the outcome of duck tembusu virus (DTMUV) infection was studied in ducks. Three groups of Cherry Valley ducks at 1, 3, and 7 weeks of age were intramuscularly infected with DTMUV to systematically observe the clinical symptoms, pathological changes, tissue viral loads, and immune responses. Severe clinical symptoms and neurological dysfunction were observed in 1-week-o...