Biomechanics of fin/body interactions in fish propelled by undulatory median and/or paired fins

由波状中鳍和/或成对鳍推动的鱼类鳍/身体相互作用的生物力学

• 批准号: 7137-2009
• 负责人: Blake, Robert
• 金额: $ 1.82万
• 依托单位: University of British Columbia
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Discovery Grants Program - Individual
• 财政年份: 2010
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2010-01-01 至 2011-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=450078
• 关键词: Biomechanics; fin; body; interactions; fish

The relationships between structure and function in animals can effectively be addressed from the standpoints of both biology and physics. This integration forms the basis of the science of biomechanics. The mechanics of fish swimming (how a fish interacts with the water to produce propulsive forces), energetics (the associated energy) and efficiency (how much energy is wasted) are well understood for fish that swim by undulating their body. This has allowed for an understanding of perfomance in relation to form and muscle powering. For example, the endurance of migrating salmon, the high sustained swimming speed of tuna and the rapid acceleration of pike as they catch their prey. However, less is known about the mechanics and energetics of fish that have a rigid body carapace and swim by undulatory motions of their fins (e.g. trunkfish, boxfish and pufferfish). My previous studies have identified a variety of adaptations that allow these forms to move efficiently at relatively low speed through complex and cluttered environments such as coral reefs. This study focuses on a number of energetically advantageous mechanical interactions between the fish's propulsive fins and its body. Theory suggests that an undulating sheet-like fin attached to a rigid body produces more thrust than the same fin executing the same motions "on its own". The purpose of this study is to experimentally confirm this effect and assess its magnitude and energetic consequences in a variety of "non-bodied swimmers". Recently, engineers have turned to biology for solutions to practical problems (bioinspiration) and boxfish and their relatives are good models for certain autonomous underwater vehicles that may be used in environmental monitoring (e.g. detecting pollutant concentrations and sources, military applications, ocean surveying) and this work will likely contribute to the design and operation of such vehicles. In particular, undulatory fins offer high efficiency and manoeuvrability. Energy savings through positive hydrodynamic interactions between the propulsor and body being propelled may protract vehicle battery life and thereby mission duration.

动物的结构和功能之间的关系可以从生物学和物理学的角度有效地解决。这种整合形成了生物力学科学的基础。鱼的游动机制(鱼如何与水相互作用产生推进力)、能量学(相关能量)和效率(浪费了多少能量)对于通过波动身体游泳的鱼来说是很清楚的。这使得对表现与形式和肌肉力量的关系有了一个理解。例如，迁徙的鲑鱼的耐力，金枪鱼持续的高游泳速度，以及梭子鱼在捕捉猎物时的快速加速。然而，对于具有硬性身体甲壳并通过其鳍的波动运动游泳的鱼(例如，箱鱼、箱鱼和河豚)的力学和能量学了解较少。我之前的研究已经确定了各种适应，使这些形式能够在复杂和杂乱的环境中以相对较低的速度高效地移动，例如珊瑚礁。这项研究集中在鱼的推进鳍和身体之间的一些具有能量优势的机械相互作用。理论表明，连接在刚体上的起伏的薄片状的鳍比同样的鳍“单独”执行相同的运动产生更大的推力。这项研究的目的是在实验上证实这一效应，并评估其在各种“非身体游泳者”中的规模和能量后果。最近，工程师们转向生物学来解决实际问题(生物灵感)，箱鱼及其近亲是某些可用于环境监测(例如，探测污染物浓度和来源、军事应用、海洋测量)的自主水下机器人的良好模型，这项工作可能有助于此类机器人的设计和操作。特别值得一提的是，波浪式鳍片提供了高效率和机动性。通过推进器和被推进的车身之间的正流体动力相互作用来节省能源，可以延长车辆电池的寿命，从而延长任务持续时间。