Design and CFD Based Simulation Analysis of a Biotic Webbed Feet Propulsion Mechanism for Hydroplaning

摘要

Aquatic unmanned aerial vehicles (U AV) have aroused attention from researchers, though no fully- featured aerial-aquatic U AV exists so far. The biological prototypes of which includes the cormorants adopting a treading strategy. Based on previous achievements in biological investigation, we developed a biomimetic prototype mimicking the webbed-foot under similar movement and stress situation. Curve fitting modeling and parameter optimization using MATLAB contribute to the design of the linkage mechanism to attain specific movements. The kinematic and dynamic infinite analysis is conducted by ANSYS FLUENT, revealing key features of the velocity, and the force and torque exerted on the morphologic mimicking flipper. From the results, we evaluated the contributions of the webbed-feet on the take-off propulsion in the aspects of motor pattern and forced deformation, establishing a foundation for further applications in the design of propulsion system of aerial-aquatic UAV.