Wireless 'robofly' looks like an Insect, gets its power from lasers

RoboFly is only slightly bigger than a real fly. A new type of flying robot is so tiny and lightweight -- it weighs about as much as a toothpick -- it can perch on your finger. The little flitter is also capable of untethered flight and is powered by lasers. This is a big leap forward in the design of diminutive airborne bots, which are usually too small to support a power source and must trail a lifeline to a distant battery in order to fly, engineers who built the new robot announced in a statement. Their insect-inspired creation is dubbed RoboFly, and like its animal namesake, it sports a pair of delicate, transparent wings that carry it into the air. But unlike its robot precursors, RoboFly ain't got no strings to hold it down.