The low-fidelity prototype was designed to fight off varroa mites and be resistant to pesticides. The varroa mite deterrent featured metal armor on the thorax, and metal spikes on the abdomen. This bee also had pesticide-sensory receptors on the antennae, which would be used to detect pesticides on flowers and plants that bees wanted to pollinate. The prototype also carried a large stinger to fight off predators and dangers. The larger, stronger wings were the main structure that was carried over into the final product.
The Final Product
The final product, The Scorbeeion, featured many changes from the low-fidelity prototype. The final bee was designed to be resilient against only varroa mites. The spikes on the abdomen, large stinger, and pesticide sensors were all removed. Instead, a metal armor was added to the whole bee body. This armor (the metallic black color) was designed so that varroa mites could not penetrate through to the skin. The large stinger was changed into a scorpion-style tail. This stinger allows bees to inject poison into mites on their backs, and the backs of other bees. This can also act as a prying tool to remove mites from bees' bodies. The pesticide sensor was changed to a mite sensor. These mite sensors are enlarged to allow for a more efficient detection of mites in the hive. Similar to the prototype, the final bee featured larger, stronger wings. These wings were made to counteract the added weight that the bees must carry around from the stinger and armor. The large wings also allow bees to fly further with less effort when food sources are not immediately nearby.
The Production Proceess
The final production of our bee was made using 3D printing and laser-cutting. The files for the bee body and the scorpion tail were found online (references found below in presentation). The file for the wings were from the Sticky Innovation files. Both of our 3D prints only took one try, which was a huge accomplishment for our group with no 3D printing experience. The laser-cut wings were made in two attempts. The program was ran twice to allow for deeper engravings into the material. A big shout out to all of the employees at the Makerspace for all of their help with the use of their machines!
Reflection
The presentations as a whole were very inspiring for the future of bees, and the world in general. The innovative designs made could one day be put into a practical use in the real world. Although it may not be practical to genetically engineer a bee to have armor impenetrable to varroa mites, the principal could be put into use to stop the infestation of varroa mites. The teamwork and collaboration displayed by all of the teams showed just how efficiently the design process works when in a team. Innovation is the way of the future, and this project gave me hope for the many wicked problems that our society is facing today. The completely new machines used in this project proved to be a difficult, but fun, learning process. The introduction to the programs and machinery in the Makerspace will be something that I plan to use in the future.