Collaborative Research: Investigating aerial maneuvers in bat flight using experiments, mathematical modeling, and robotic mimicry

蝙蝠以其空中杂技技能而闻名，这使它们能够在茂密的植被中机动，捕捉猎物并寻找营养物质。完成这些众多的功能需要蝙蝠控制、适应和协调它们的翅膀运动、身体姿势和它们在空中进行的内部动作。该项目旨在了解蝙蝠如何在如此复杂的空中行为中掌握运动学，空气动力学和控制的集成。这将揭示生物学中潜在的流体动力学和运动学控制，也将影响工程师在下一代多功能扑翼无人机的技术系统中复制这种能力的能力。该项目的目标是在综合实验和数学模型的基础上，了解蝙蝠的空中多任务。该项目将从两种不同的方法获得实验数据：蝙蝠在苛刻的飞行机动和行为多任务情况下的变形翅膀运动学将用同步高速摄像机阵列记录，并使用深度学习方法进行处理。这些生物数据将通过一个仿生机器人系统的实验加以补充，该系统将被用于模仿蝙蝠的变形翅膀，并将用于探索比观察动物更大的参数空间。这将提供对不同运动模式的影响的见解。同时，将建立扑翼飞行的数学模型，以提取实验中看到的复杂机动中的关键物理。扑翼飞行的仿真将进一步阐明能量学与飞行稳定性之间的权衡关系。在整个项目中，我们将积极传播我们的发现，以教育K-12学生和公众。由于蝙蝠实验将在文莱大学进行，该项目将为参与的本科生和研究生提供独特的机会，让他们了解婆罗洲热带雨林出色的生物多样性。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Bats are known for their aerial acrobatics skills that enable them to maneuver in dense vegetation, to catch preys, and find nutrients. Accomplishing these multitude of functions requires the bats to control, adapt, and coordinate their wing motions, body posture, and internal actions that they engage in while airborne. This project seeks to understand how bats master the integration of kinematics, aerodynamics, and control in such complex aerial behaviors. This would shed light on underlying fluid dynamics and kinematic controls in biology, and also impact the ability for engineers to replicate such abilities in technical systems in the next-generation multiple-functioning drones with flapping flight. The goal of the project is to understand aerial multi-tasking by bats based on comprehensive experiments and mathematical models. The project will obtain experimental data from two different approaches: The morphing wing kinematics of the bats during demanding flight maneuvers and behavioral multi-tasking situations will be recorded with an array of synchronized high-speed cameras and processed with deep learning methods. These biological data will be complemented by experiments with a biomimetic robotic system that will be implemented to mimic the bats' morphing wings and will be used to explore a larger parameter spaces than would be possible with observations of the animals. This will provide insights into the effects of different kinematic patterns. In parallel, mathematical models of flapping flight will be developed to extract the key physics in the sophisticated maneuvers seen the in the experiments. The simulation of flapping flight will further elucidate the trade-off between the energetics and stability of flight. Throughout the project, we will actively disseminate our findings to educate K-12 students and the general public. Since the bat experiments will be performed at the University of Brunei, the project will give participating undergraduate and graduate students unique exposure to the outstanding biodiversity of Borneo's rainforests.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.