Gait control for undulatory swimmers: inspiration from biological systems to robots

Sridhar Ravi; Karthick Dhileep; Don Sofge; Qiuxiang Huang; Fangbao Tian; John Young; Joseph Lai

doi:10.1117/12.3023805

10 June 2024 Gait control for undulatory swimmers: inspiration from biological systems to robots

Sridhar Ravi, Karthick Dhileep, Don Sofge, Qiuxiang Huang, Fangbao Tian, John Young, Joseph Lai

Proceedings Volume 13055, Unmanned Systems Technology XXVI; 1305506 (2024) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.3023805
Event: SPIE Defense + Commercial Sensing, 2024, National Harbor, Maryland, United States

Abstract

Swimming animals display exceptional ability to move efficiently in aquatic environments and display a rich diversity of mechanisms for generating and controlling propulsive force. The swimming profile and performance of aquatic animals has been of interest to engineers, biologist, and roboticists alike. Among the different swimming modes, undulatory swimming is common across various animals such as fish and eels. In this swimming mode, traveling or stationary waves are generated over the body and the control of which results in the generation of propulsive force. What is the relationship between the waveforms and the fluid mechanic forces? We sought to answer this question by combining experiments on biological swimmers and computational fluid dynamics simulations. We found that various swimming gaits can be generated through modulation of simple parameterized model. A bio-inspired robotic model was developed to demonstrate and test the locomotion dynamics of the various gaits. The findings from this study pave the way for highly maneuverable swimming robots that exploit the interplay between body waves and fluid forces.

Conference Presentation

Citation Download Citation

Sridhar Ravi, Karthick Dhileep, Don Sofge, Qiuxiang Huang, Fangbao Tian, John Young, and Joseph Lai "Gait control for undulatory swimmers: inspiration from biological systems to robots", Proc. SPIE 13055, Unmanned Systems Technology XXVI, 1305506 (10 June 2024); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.3023805

ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE

INSTITUTIONAL
Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.

SELECT YOUR INSTITUTION

PERSONAL
Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.

PERSONAL SIGN IN

No SPIE Account? Create one

PURCHASE THIS CONTENT

SUBSCRIBE TO DIGITAL LIBRARY

50 downloads per 1-year subscription

Members: $195

Non-members: $335 ADD TO CART

25 downloads per 1 - year subscription

Members: $145

Non-members: $250 ADD TO CART

PURCHASE SINGLE ARTICLE

Includes PDF, HTML & Video, when available