Flexible Wing Dynamics of an Underwater Gliding Robot

Biological flapping wing propulsion is known for its high efficiency, high mobility and high stability. The pectoral fins of fish contains nerves, muscle contraction, power transmission, biomaterials, etc., providing thrust and steering to the fish. Many scholars have studied the physiology and ecology of fish fins. Investigations have shown that the structure and size of the pectoral fins have an important influence on the swimming performance of fish, and also the flapping wing robots. This paper designed a special underwater gliding robot, manta-ray inspired robot, analyzed the motion mechanism of the flapping wing propulsion, designed a new flexible wing propulsion device - tensegrity structure, and used the Euler-Lagrange equation to establish its dynamics model, and derived the static stiffness of the tensegrity structure. The cycle variation rules of the fluid force applied to the system and the tension applied to the structure were obtained through MATLAB. A prototype was fabricated, and the feasibility of the flexible wing mounted on a manta-ray inspired robot was verified through tests.