CAREER: Harnessing Environmental Complexity in Bio-Inspired Locomotion

Flows in the atmosphere and ocean exhibit complicated patterns that include swirls, gusts, and waves. Underwater and aerial vehicles must contend with variability in the flow surrounding the vehicle, which often reduces their efficiency. However, many animals can take advantage of flow variability to improve their propulsion. This project will use mathematical modeling, computer simulation and wind tunnel experiments to find ways to exploit flow variability in locomotion. Results will improve the performance and reliability of underwater and aerial vehicles. Vehicles that can adapt to flow variability will improve ocean exploration and observation, underwater inspection and cleanup, aquaculture, and defense applications. The project will engage students in hands-on STEM research and outreach to encourage students to pursue careers in STEM fields and contribute to a strong national workforce. This project will identify ways to harness environmental flow heterogeneity and unsteadiness in the context of locomotion. The research will focus on swimming, but it will exploit similarities between swimming and flight. Aim 1 will study how to harness interactions between swimmers and complex boundaries by relating boundary shape to the dynamics, efficiency, and propulsive performance of swimmers. Aim 2 will study how structured ambient flow disturbances can be harnessed for propulsion. Aim 3 will study how to maintain the stability and cohesion of large collectives of swimmers. A combination of mathematical modeling, computer simulations, and water tunnel experiments will be used to study these effects across a range of conditions. This layered approach will help identify physical mechanisms and define limits of simplified models. By extending research in bio-inspired locomotion from highly idealized flow environments to realistic ones, this project will help understand how locomoting organisms and machines interact with real flows. Results will aid the design of next-generation underwater and aerial vehicles, foster collaboration across engineering and life sciences, and engage students in research and education at the intersection of physics, biology, and robotics. 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. NSF Award ID: 2543879 | Program: 01002627DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT | Principal Investigator: Daniel Floryan | Institution: University of Houston, HOUSTON, TX | Award Amount: $539,325 View on NSF Award Search: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/show-award/?AWD_ID=2543879 View on Research.gov: https://www.research.gov/awardapi-service/v1/awards/2543879.html