LEARNING FROM GYMNOTIFORM SWIMMERS — DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION OF ROBOTIC KNIFEFISH NKF-II

Gymnotiform swimmer uses single undulating anal fin below the rigid body as the propulsor. This special morphological structure is generally thought to have advantages in reducing the friction drag in undulatory movements. The finned body form and the undulatory swimming gait give the inspiration to the design of underwater robot. We have developed a robotic fish (Nanyang KnifeFish, NKF-I), which learns from a Gymnotiform swimmer: Black Ghost Knifefish. A new version of biomimetic robotic fish (NKF-II) is presented in this paper. To mimic the actual flexible fin of real fish, an optimized fin-like propulsion mechanism is modelled with a series of connecting linkages for enhancing its propulsive performance. Workspace of the proposed mechanism is studied and optimized. Swimming motion function is also established for the planning of the undulatory gait movement. The manoeuvrability and buoyancy control has also been achieved by the integration of mechatronics design of a buoyancy module with the undulating fin. The design philosophy of modularity has also been incorporated into the design of the fish. Hence, the modularity of the prototypes not only provides versatility for the robot system and also facilitates in the maintenance and future development of fish with undulating fins/body, as new modules can be added to replace the existing modules easily. By reconfiguring the components of NKF-II, other version of robotic fish with undulating fins/body is derived. This evolution of the undulating fins is also discussed.

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Development of modular and reconfigurable biomimetic robotic fish with undulating fin

2007 IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Biomimetics (ROBIO) ◽

10.1109/robio.2007.4522173 ◽

2007 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

K. H. Low ◽

Junzhi Yu

Keyword(s):

Robotic Fish ◽

Biomimetic Robotic Fish ◽

Undulating Fin

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Design of a Biomimetic Robotic Fish Controlled by a Touch Screen

Volume 2: Dynamic Modeling and Diagnostics in Biomedical Systems; Dynamics and Control of Wind Energy Systems; Vehicle Energy Management Optimization; Energy Storage, Optimization; Transportation and Grid Applications; Estimation and Identification Methods, Tracking, Detection, Alternative Propulsion Systems; Ground and Space Vehicle Dynamics; Intelligent Transportation Systems and Control; Energy Harvesting; Modeling and Control for Thermo-Fluid Applications, IC Engines, Manufacturing ◽

10.1115/dscc2014-5842 ◽

2014 ◽

Author(s):

Paul Phamduy ◽

Raymond Le Grand ◽

Maurizio Porfiri

Keyword(s):

Informal Learning ◽

Science Learning ◽

Swimming Performance ◽

Three Dimensional ◽

Touch Screen ◽

Robotic Fish ◽

Performance Tests ◽

Increasing Trend ◽

Biomimetic Robotic Fish ◽

Buoyancy Control

Biomimetic robotic fish exhibits have been an attraction for many visitors in informal learning settings. Although these exhibits are entertaining to the visitors, they generally lack interactive components to promote participants’ engagement. Interactivity in exhibits is an increasing trend in public educational venues, and is a crucial factor for promoting science learning among participants. In this work, we propose a novel platform for enhancing participant interaction through a robotic fish controlled by a touch screen device. Specifically, we develop and characterize a robotic fish based on a multi-link design with a pitch and buoyancy control system for three-dimensional biomimetic swimming. Performance tests are conducted to assess the robotic fish speed.

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Dynamic simulation model of a biomimetic robotic fish with multi-joint propulsion mechanism

Transactions of the Institute of Measurement and Control ◽

10.1177/0142331214565710 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 37 (5) ◽

pp. 684-695 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Deniz Korkmaz ◽

Z. Hakan Akpolat ◽

Servet Soygüder ◽

Hasan Alli

Keyword(s):

Simulation Model ◽

Dynamic Simulation ◽

Robotic Fish ◽

Propulsion Mechanism ◽

Dynamic Simulation Model ◽

Biomimetic Robotic Fish

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Undulatory Swimming Performance Explored With a Biorobotic Fish and Measured by Soft Sensors and Particle Image Velocimetry

Frontiers in Robotics and AI ◽

10.3389/frobt.2021.791722 ◽

2022 ◽

Vol 8 ◽

Author(s):

Fabian Schwab ◽

Fabian Wiesemüller ◽

Claudio Mucignat ◽

Yong-Lae Park ◽

Ivan Lunati ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Particle Image Velocimetry ◽

Particle Image ◽

Swimming Performance ◽

The Body ◽

Robotic Fish ◽

Dynamic Mode ◽

Recirculating Flow ◽

Swimming Motion ◽

Image Velocimetry ◽

Undulatory Swimming

Due to the difficulty of manipulating muscle activation in live, freely swimming fish, a thorough examination of the body kinematics, propulsive performance, and muscle activity patterns in fish during undulatory swimming motion has not been conducted. We propose to use soft robotic model animals as experimental platforms to address biomechanics questions and acquire understanding into subcarangiform fish swimming behavior. We extend previous research on a bio-inspired soft robotic fish equipped with two pneumatic actuators and soft strain sensors to investigate swimming performance in undulation frequencies between 0.3 and 0.7 Hz and flow rates ranging from 0 to 20 cms in a recirculating flow tank. We demonstrate the potential of eutectic gallium–indium (eGaIn) sensors to measure the lateral deflection of a robotic fish in real time, a controller that is able to keep a constant undulatory amplitude in varying flow conditions, as well as using Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) to characterizing swimming performance across a range of flow speeds and give a qualitative measurement of thrust force exerted by the physical platform without the need of externally attached force sensors. A detailed wake structure was then analyzed with Dynamic Mode Decomposition (DMD) to highlight different wave modes present in the robot’s swimming motion and provide insights into the efficiency of the robotic swimmer. In the future, we anticipate 3D-PIV with DMD serving as a global framework for comparing the performance of diverse bio-inspired swimming robots against a variety of swimming animals.

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