TY - JOUR
T1 - Impact of arm morphology on the hydrodynamic behavior of a two-arm robotic marine vehicle
AU - Kazakidi, Asimina
AU - Tsakiris, Dimitris P.
AU - Ekaterinaris, John A.
PY - 2017/7/9
Y1 - 2017/7/9
N2 - Increasing the functionality and efficiency of small underwater marine robotic systems has been a significant challenge, particularly regarding their use in tasks requiring enhanced maneuverability, long-distance travel and delicate underwater manipulation of objects. In this paper, we explore the impact of bio-inspired arm morphology on underwater propulsion, through examination of the generated hydrodynamic forces and the corresponding complex vortical patterns in the wake of a novel two-arm underwater robotic swimmer, inspired by the octopus arm-swimming behavior. We demonstrate for the first time, via detailed modelling and CFD studies, the use of a variety of slender arm morphologies as thrust actuators in a system that can achieve forward propulsion, by the slow opening and rapid closing of these arms ("arm sculling"), while minimizing the lateral excursion of the system. Robotic prototypes, based on such principles, have already been used by our group to observe marine ecosystems, without disturbing them as much as current ROVs. Further applications of such robotic systems could be envisioned in future medical rehabilitation studies.
AB - Increasing the functionality and efficiency of small underwater marine robotic systems has been a significant challenge, particularly regarding their use in tasks requiring enhanced maneuverability, long-distance travel and delicate underwater manipulation of objects. In this paper, we explore the impact of bio-inspired arm morphology on underwater propulsion, through examination of the generated hydrodynamic forces and the corresponding complex vortical patterns in the wake of a novel two-arm underwater robotic swimmer, inspired by the octopus arm-swimming behavior. We demonstrate for the first time, via detailed modelling and CFD studies, the use of a variety of slender arm morphologies as thrust actuators in a system that can achieve forward propulsion, by the slow opening and rapid closing of these arms ("arm sculling"), while minimizing the lateral excursion of the system. Robotic prototypes, based on such principles, have already been used by our group to observe marine ecosystems, without disturbing them as much as current ROVs. Further applications of such robotic systems could be envisioned in future medical rehabilitation studies.
KW - unmanned marine vehicles
KW - marine system identification and modelling
KW - marine robotics
KW - biologically-inspired robots
KW - computational fluid dynamics (CFD)
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85031766183&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - https://www.ifac2017.org/
U2 - 10.1016/j.ifacol.2017.08.231
DO - 10.1016/j.ifacol.2017.08.231
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85031766183
VL - 50
SP - 2304
EP - 2309
JO - IFAC-PapersOnLine
JF - IFAC-PapersOnLine
SN - 2405-8963
IS - 1
T2 - IFAC 2017 World Congress
Y2 - 9 July 2017 through 14 July 2017
ER -