Get Started for FREE
Sign up with Facebook Sign up with X
I don't have a Facebook or a X account
 Your new post is loading...
Your new post is loading...
Scoop.it!
"To build more aerodynamic machines, researchers are drawing inspiration from an unlikely source: the ocean. A team of evolutionary biologists and engineers at Harvard University, in collaboration with colleagues from the University of South Carolina, have shed light on a decades-old mystery about sharkskin and, in the process, demonstrated a new, bioinspired structure that could improve the aerodynamic performance of planes, wind turbines, drones and cars." 
No comment yet.
Sign up to comment
Scoop.it!
"Animal Dynamics, a company formed of biomechanics from the University of Oxford’s Department of Zoology, islooking to break the human-powered water speed record in a canoe propelled by an underwater fin, mimicking the way that dolphins or whales swim. The team believes that a flapping fin design could be a more efficient than a traditional propeller mechanism, as it works with the natural flow of water, rather than against it. Instead of using paddles, the catamaran-style canoe has a hydrofoil under its bow which is operated by a driver using a pedaling system. The cycling motion drives a fin downwards through the water, creating the thrust to propel the canoe forwards."
Scoop.it!
From
gemini
"Researchers from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) are testing a model “whale tail” that can be attached to ships. NTNU is conducting these tests in the Marintek Towing Tank in cooperation with Rolls-Royce and the British companies Seaspeed and MOST. [...] The main goal of the whale tail is to help reduce fuel use by using wave energy to help the ship move forward."
Scoop.it!
From
phys
Researchers at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) have taken inspiration from nature—from fish, in particular—to design and develop novel underwater propulsion, control, and sensing solutions for near-shore and littoral zone missions.
Scoop.it!
"The core of PAX Water’s mixing technology is the highly efficient and powerful Lily impeller – a biomimetic technology used to solve potable water challenges. Inventor Jay Harman developed the Lily impeller after studying fluid flow efficiencies in natural systems, such as air and ocean currents. He observed that nature never moves in a straight line, and instead tends to flow in a spiraling path he called nature’s Streamlining Principle."
Scoop.it!
The sailfish can swim faster than a cheetah can run – and the secrets behind its speed inspired McLaren’s Frank Stephenson to create a new car.
Scoop.it!
"Sometimes the answers to some of the most challenging problems with technology can be found in nature. Researchers hoping to design more agile and fuel-efficient submarines are taking cues from the unique and elegant way stingrays swim. Scientists at Harvard University and the University at Buffalo are studying how stingrays move, including the seemingly effortless way the fish's round and flattened bodies ripple through water. The new research could inspire the development of next-generation unmanned submarines for ocean exploration, clean-up efforts or rescue missions."
Scoop.it!
Speedo has abandoned its shark-inspired swimsuits for the streamlined silhouette of the barracuda.
|
Scoop.it!
"Millions of years ago, even before the continents had settled into place, jellyfish were already swimming the oceans with the same pulsing motions we observe today. Now through clever experiments and insightful math, an interdisciplinary research team has revealed a startling truth about how jellyfish and lampreys, another ancient species that undulate like eels, move through the water with unmatched efficiency."
Scoop.it!
"Scientists have been trying to unlock the secrets of shark skin for more than 50 years. The key to sharks' hydrodynamic prowess lies in how the rigid, tooth-like structures that coat their flexible skin change the flow of water as sharks swim forward – but attempts to quantify this effect have fallen short. After all, it's tough to fabricate a material that closely mimics shark skin, a marvel of Nature honed over the 400 million years that sharks have sleuthed the seas."
Marcelo Errera's curator insight,
July 14, 2015 3:03 PM
Mimicking is a great way of fast-forwarding the design process. It is a never ending process.
Scoop.it!
"When you inflate a balloon and then release it without tying the valve shut, it certainly shoots away quickly. Octopi utilize the same basic principle, although they suck in and then rapidly expel water. An international team of scientists have now replicated that system in a soft-bodied miniature underwater vehicle, which could pave the way for very quickly-accelerating full-size submersibles."
Scoop.it!
"In 2005, Mercedes-Benz revealed a concept car with a strange shape. Called the Bionic, the cartoonishly snub-nosed vehicle was modeled after Ostracion cubicus, the yellow boxfish. Car manufacturers aren’t the only ones to take inspiration from this weird coral dweller. But researchers now say engineers who mimicked the boxfish might have been misled."
Scoop.it!
"Speedo’s cutting edge new Nemesis Fins are making waves in the swimming world. The most comfortable fitness and swim training fin on the market, Speedo’s new Nemesis Fin was designed using biomimicry and inspired by the pectoral fin of the Humpback Whale. The scalloped outer edge of the fins, like that of the Humpback Whale, creates greater surface area for water to pass over versus a smooth, straight edge. This technology creates enhanced propulsion, allowing the swimmer to push more water during kicking drills and training sets."
Scoop.it!
"Sharks have tough skin that is worthy of biomimicry by nanotechnology designers and engineers. New coatings, textiles and other technologies that mimic the special biological properties of shark skin have been developed in recent years and many more such innovations are emerging across multiple industries."
Scoop.it!
"Whales are some of the most extreme creatures on Earth The 115 foot, 150 foot ton Blue Whale, for instance, is the largest animal that ever lived. These magnificent creatures are social mammals, descended from an ancient land dweller that also gave rise to the hippopotamus family. Like hippos and humans, they are warm-blooded and air-breathing, and stay with their young, nursing them for an extended period of time. And like us, they maintain complex social networks. As you might imagine, the whale faces some special challenges doing all this in the ocean. As usual, where challenge is extreme, the solutions are efficient. So how can the Blue Whale inspire us today?
|
