Hot on the tailfeathers of a swift-inspired plane, researchers at MIT's BioInstrumentation laboratory have made a prototype submarine propelled by robotic fins patterned on those of the bluegill sunfish.
The bluegill, whose catch and palm-prickling release is among the great summertime joys of boyhood, curls its pectoral fins into a letter-c as they move forward, then flattens them upon return.
Led by mechanical engineer James Tangorra, the MIT team recreated the fins with thin, flexible polymer that changes shape when charged with an electric current. Next up, says Tangorra, are the dorsal and tail fins, and the relationship of each to the fish's moving body.
The result, he said, would be a fully flexible, fish-mimicking, underwater robot vehicle that could operate at high and low speeds, hover and have excellent manoeuvrability, in calm or rough seas.
Now if they could just take a hint from the RoboSwift's videocamera eyes and remote-controlled operation, and we could swim virtually with the fish....
Robot fins to propel submarines [BBC]
Image: MIT*
