Related papers: Force Characterization of Insect-Scale Aquatic Pro…
Traditional locomotion strategies become ineffective at low Reynolds numbers, where viscous forces predominate over inertial forces. To adapt, microorganisms have evolved specialized structures like cilia and flagella for efficient…
We design an insect-sized rolling microrobot driven by continuously rotating wheels. It measures 18mm$\times$8mm$\times$8mm. There are 2 versions of the robot - a 96mg laser-powered one and a 130mg supercapacitor powered one. The robot can…
We develop a numerical framework to simulate the locomotion of a flagellated bacterium with a spheroidal head (such as Escherichia coli) in biological fluids like mucus, which are entangled polymer solutions exhibiting elasto-viscoplastic…
We report a novel physics-informed neural framework for reconstructing unsteady fluid-structure interactions (FSI) from sparse, single-phase observations of the flow. Our approach combines a modal surface model with coordinate neural…
Further improvements are made to the non-linear data analysis algorithm for the atomic force microscope [P. Attard, arXiv:1212.3019v2 (2012)]. The algorithm is required when there is curvature in the compliance region due to photo-diode…
In the application of underwater creature study, comparing with propeller-powered ROVs and servo motor actuated robotic fish, novel biomimetic fish robot designs with soft actuation structure could interact with aquatic creatures closely…
The mechanical complexity of flapping wings, their unsteady aerodynamic flow, and challenge of making measurements at the scale of a sub-gram flapping-wing flying insect robot (FIR) make its behavior hard to predict. Knowing the precise…
A three-dimensional mathematical model of a viscous incompressible fluid with two stiff particles is investigated in the near-contact regime. When one of the particles approaches the other motionless particle with prescribed translational…
The design of artificial microswimmers is often inspired by the strategies of natural microorganisms. Many of these creatures exploit the fact that elasticity breaks the time-reversal symmetry of motion at low Reynolds numbers, but this…
Suspensions of unicellular microswimmers such as flagellated bacteria or motile algae exhibit spontaneous density heterogeneities at large enough concentrations. Based on the relative location of the biological actuation appendages i.e.…
Insect wings can undergo significant deformation during flapping motion owing to inertial, elastic and aerodynamic forces. Changes in shape then alter aerodynamic forces, resulting in a fully coupled Fluid-Structure Interaction (FSI)…
We study the orientational and translational dynamics of spherical microswimmers trapped at fluid interfaces, in terms of the force dipole and source dipole components of their flow field. Using numerical simulations and analytical…
The primary aim of this study is to enhance the accuracy of our aerodynamic Fluid-Structure Interaction (FSI) model to support the controlled tracking of 3D flight trajectories by Aerobat, which is a dynamic morphing winged drone. Building…
Microswimmers exhibit more diverse behavior in quasi-two dimensions than in three dimensions. Such behavior remains elusive due to the analytical difficulty of dealing with two parallel solid boundaries. The existence of additional…
Locomotion is typically studied either in continuous media where bodies and legs experience forces generated by the flowing medium, or on solid substrates dominated by friction. In the former, centralized coordination is believed to…
We present a new unimorph actuator for micro-robotics, which is driven by thin shape-memory alloy (SMA) wires. Using a passive-capillary-alignment technique and existing SMA-microsystem fabrication methods, we developed an actuator that is…
Fluid-suspended microorganisms have evolved different swimming and feeding strategies in order to cope with an environment dominated by viscous effects. For instance ciliated organisms rely on the collective motion of flexible appendices to…
With soft robotics being increasingly employed in settings demanding high and controlled contact forces, recent research has demonstrated the use of soft robots to estimate or intrinsically sense forces without requiring external sensing…
The bio-inspired engineering of ovipositing wasps, which employ a reciprocating motion for soft tissue insertion, offers potential advantages in reducing insertion force and minimizing tissue damage. However, the underlying mechanisms of…
The coupling interactions between deformable structures and unsteady fluid flows occur across a wide range of spatial and temporal scales in many engineering applications. These fluid-structure interactions (FSI) pose significant challenges…