Combined hydrodynamic and control analysis on optimal kinematic parameters for bio-inspired autonomous underwater vehicle manoeuvring

Abstract

To investigate the manoeuvring performance of a body-caudal fin robot fish, a numerical framework combining computational fluid dynamics and multi-body dynamics with a closed-loop control algorithm was established in this study. Within this framework, we modelled a body-caudal fin swimmer as a multi-body system with the shape of a NACA0012 hydrofoil. The manoeuvring performance was investigated by using different curvature magnitudes and distributions along the centre line (the curvature is defined by means of a curvature envelop function as part of the general body undulation equation). To characterize the turning performance, a new parameter named cost of manoeuvring (CoM) is proposed. This parameter provides a combined assessment of the turning radius, linear and angular velocity components, and power. It is found that when the body curvature is introduced, the swimmer switches from straight-line swimming to quasi-steady turning at a constant speed. Further investigations were conducted to study contributions of head and tail deformations on the turning performance by comparing predominantly head and tail curved envelopes. Results reveal that a tail-dominated envelope improves performance, whereas a head-dominated envelope has a negative effect.

Review of Computational Fluid Dynamics Analysis in Biomimetic Applications for Underwater Vehicles

“…In this process, CFD numerical simulations have made significant contributions to the research of many scholars. Numerous researchers have investigated the hydrodynamic performance of robotic fish using this method [3,[90][91][92], advancing future related research. Lamas and Rodriguez [93] conducted a comprehensive review of numerical simulations in hydrodynamics and biomimetic propulsion, highlighting the importance of numerical simulations in studying fish swimming patterns.…”