Creating bio-inspired synthetic flowers to support standardised monitoring of pollinating insects

Funder	Natural Environment Research Council
Recipient Organization	Cranfield University
Country	United Kingdom
Start Date	Sep 30, 2022
End Date	Mar 26, 2026
Duration	1,273 days
Number of Grantees	2
Roles	Student; Supervisor
Data Source	UKRI Gateway to Research
Grant ID	`2761515`

Grant Description

Project highlights:

- This project will support global efforts to investigate and monitor declining pollinator population by fabricating bio-inspired 'synthetic' flower attractants.

- This interdisciplinary project will use cutting edge techniques in design including 3D printing, CAD and visualisation, in design and microfabrication to replicate flower shape, colours (including UV), smells and function (i.e. providing micro-capillary sugar solution)

- 'Synthetic' flowers will be tested in controlled settings using captive insects, as well as being deployed and tested in real world settings as attractants for machine vision AI-assisted insect monitoring systems.