Soft Swimming Robots Inspired by Manta Rays

Manta rays use wing-like pectoral fins for intriguing oscillatory swimming — providing rich inspiration for designing potentially fast, efficient, and maneuverable soft swimming robots. Watch this video to see how a team from NC State University overcame this challenge.

“Two years ago, we demonstrated an aquatic soft robot that was able to reach average speeds of 3.74 body lengths per second,” says Jie Yin , corresponding author of a paper on the work and an associate professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at North Carolina State University. “We have improved on that design. Our new soft robot is more energy efficient and reaches a speed of 6.8 body lengths per second. In addition, the previous model could only swim on the surface of the water. Our new robot is capable of swimming up and down throughout the water column.”