REDWIRE Festo’s new underwater bionic robot can swim like a fish

June 26, 2018 REDWIRE is news you can use from leading suppliers. Powered by FRASERS.

Posted by Festo Inc


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underwater robot

Festo's new BionicFinWave takes inspiration from the natural designs of fish.

The latest technological breakthrough by Festo Inc. is a bionic underwater robot that takes the natural propulsion movements of fish and adapts them for industrial purposes, such as applications in wastewater treatment or general manufacturing. Shaped like a fish, the BionicFinWave moves up or down simply by bending its body, or in curves by moving one fin more quickly than the other.

With its unique fin drive concept, the BionicFinWave is best suited for slow, precise motion and causes minimal water turbulence while swimming.

Designers inspired by nature

Festo’s Bionic Learning Network team was inspired by nature – specifically, the undulating fin movement of the polyclad, cuttlefish, Nile perch, and other marine animals – and designed this 370-millimetre underwater robot to swim in the same way. This innovative technology has the potential to yield more complex aquatic robots for applications like inspection, measurement, data acquisition, or manufacturing soft robotics components.

The BionicFinWave mimics the way cuttlefish and similar animals use longitudinal fins to generate a continuous wave along the whole lengths of their bodies, which forces water backwards and thrusts the animals forwards. With its two lateral fins, this underwater robot can move forwards or backwards with the same type of propulsion; it can also use radio to communicate with its operators and transmit temperature or pressure readings to tablets.

Festo has moulded the robot’s fins entirely out of silicone, with no need for reinforcement struts or other support. Their flexibility enables the fins to imitate the gently flowing movements of fish in a realistic way. Each fin is connected to nine small lever arms with a 45-degree deflection angle, and the arms are driven by two servo motors inside the robot. The arms receive force from two flat crankshafts, allowing the fins to move independently of each other and generate different wave patterns at the same time.

For a sneak peek at the new BionicFinWave underwater robot, have a look at this video:

With Festo’s bionics innovations, movement and other tasks become easier and more efficient.

To learn more, contact Festo.


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Posted by Festo Inc


Innovate today for a new tomorrow   For nearly a hundred years Festo has provided proven Industry Leadership, Super... Read more

Contact supplier