Hoang Vu Phan

About

Hoang Vu Phan is a leading figure in bio-inspired robotics, specializing in the design and control of insect-like flapping-wing micro air vehicles (FW-MAVs). His core research focuses on achieving stable, efficient, and long-endurance flight in tailless, hover-capable robots, drawing inspiration from beetles and other flying insects. Phan’s major contributions include the development of the KUBeetle-S, a 15.8-gram robot that demonstrates sustained hover flight using a low-torque control mechanism, and the KUBeetle-S, which achieved record flight endurance for its class. His work on collision recovery mechanisms in beetles revealed how their hindwings passively flex to absorb impacts, a principle he applied to flapping-wing robots for enhanced resilience. With over 800 citations across his most-cited papers, Phan’s research has significantly advanced the practicality of FW-MAVs for confined indoor and outdoor applications. Notable achievements include his studies on deformable wings for economical flight, clap-and-fling aerodynamics, and avian-inspired multifunctional legs for ground-to-air transitions. His comprehensive reviews, such as “Insect-inspired, tailless, hover-capable flapping-wing robots,” have become essential references, shaping the future of autonomous micro-aerial robotics.

Research Focus

Key Achievements

Top Papers

1. 1
   Insect-inspired, tailless, hover-capable flapping-wing robots: Recent progress, challenges, and future directions

   191 citations · 2019
2. 2
   Mechanisms of collision recovery in flying beetles and flapping-wing robots

   158 citations · 2020
3. 3
   Towards the Long-Endurance Flight of an Insect-Inspired, Tailless, Two-Winged, Flapping-Wing Flying Robot

   108 citations · 2020
4. 4
   KUBeetle-S: An insect-like, tailless, hover-capable robot that can fly with a low-torque control mechanism

   102 citations · 2019
5. 5
   Design and demonstration of a bio-inspired flapping-wing-assisted jumping robot

   64 citations · 2019
6. 6
   Design and evaluation of a deformable wing configuration for economical hovering flight of an insect-like tailless flying robot

   45 citations · 2018
7. 7
   Effects of wing kinematics, corrugation, and clap-and-fling on aerodynamic efficiency of a hovering insect-inspired flapping-wing micro air vehicle

   42 citations · 2021
8. 8
   Mimicking nature’s flyers: a review of insect-inspired flying robots

   40 citations · 2020
9. 9
   Fast ground-to-air transition with avian-inspired multifunctional legs

   31 citations · 2024
10. 10
    Comparative dynamic flight stability of insect-inspired flapping-wing micro air vehicles in hover: Longitudinal and lateral motions

    28 citations · 2021

Key Collaborators

Contact & Links