SGR: A Bioinspired Robotic Wing to Study Swimming in Birds and Improve Ocean Monitoring

A goal of the Tribal Colleges and Universities Program (TCUP) is to increase the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) instructional and research capacities of the Nation's Tribal colleges and universities (TCUs). Expanding the STEM curricular and research offerings at these institutions expands the opportunities of their students to pursue challenging, rewarding careers in STEM fields, provides for research studies in areas that may be culturally or scientifically significant, and encourages a community and generational appreciation for science and mathematics education. This project aligns directly with that goal. Bioinspired aerial–underwater vehicles could significantly improve the ability to monitor the ocean. Unlike present monitoring, which relies on expensive, ship-based surveys or fixed sensors with limited. spatial coverage, these vehicles could quickly survey large areas in flight and then dive underwater to. collect high-resolution data at targeted locations. Designing vehicles capable of both aerial and. underwater locomotion poses a significant engineering challenge, yet this challenge has been solved by many species of birds. Puffins, murres, and other wing-propelled divers routinely fly long distances between their nests and foraging sites before diving deep underwater to pursue agile prey. Identifying the traits that allow these birds to swim efficiently could enable engineers to incorporate similar features into aerial–underwater vehicles. At the moment, it is not possible to distinguish traits that enable efficient swimming from traits that arise from the limitations of biological materials. To address the knowledge gap, this project develops a biomimetic robotic wing that allows systematic variation of wing shape, precise control of flapping kinematics, and direct measurement of propulsive efficiency. By using this platform, experimentation can identify the morphological and kinematic traits that enable efficient swimming, as well as those that reflect biological constraints that engineers should seek to circumvent. The work yields practical design principles for next-generation aerial–underwater vehicles. Such vehicles could offer a low-cost, flexible alternative to present ocean monitoring that could be particularly valuable as marine environments continue to change rapidly. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.