A Biomimetic Approach to Efficient Underwater Propulsion

by Thomas Bliss, Hilary Bart-Smith, & Tetsuya Iwasaki SPIE Newsroom, accessed 21 Sep 2006 As the applications of underwater robots grow, finding efficient propulsion techniques is of the utmost importance. For the most part, this effort has concentrated on the hydrodynamic screw, which has many inherent problems, such as cavitation and efficiency. To overcome these shortcomings, current research has focused on the use of biomimetic propulsion, which simulates the undulation of fish tails, or the sinusoidal oscillation of the stingray or cuttlefish. Our objective is to mimic the propulsion technique the manta ray uses to swim efficiently over large distances at impressive speeds. Read more