NON-INVASIVE STUDIES OF ANIMAL PROPULSION AND SENSING
ABSTRACT : The design of next-generation propulsion systems is being aided by research related to the mechanics of animal swimming and flying. However, progress has been limited by our inability to quantitatively study animal locomotion non-invasively, e.g. given only knowledge of the flow field created by the animals. Such capabilities will not only support basic science research, but will also facilitate real-time, field performance evaluations of the resulting bio-inspired vehicle designs. Despite the increasing popularity of laser velocimetry techniques such as DPIV for the non-invasive quantification of fluid flows created by biological propulsion systems, a complementary analytical framework in which to interpret those results is currently lacking. We describe recent efforts toward the establishment of such a methodology, demonstrating the results in experimental studies of jellyfish swimming and feeding, as well as maneuvering bony fishes. The incorporation of feeding dynamics in bio-inspired propulsion studies is introduced here, and allows for the extraction of design principles related to traditional thrust and efficiency goals as well as fluid-based sensing capabilities.
Bio: John O. Dabiri is an Assistant Professor of Aeronautics and Bioengineering in the Graduate Aeronautical Laboratories and Bioengineering California Institute of Technology Pasadena, CA 91125, USA jodabiri@caltech.edu