Verification of the effect of elastic material on the swimming of fish-type robot driven by snap-through buckling

Abstract

We have focused on the high maneuverability of fish such as rapid turning and acceleration, and have studied fish-like robots using snap-through buckling. In our previous research, we developed a fish robot with a bendable body consisting of a multi-link structure. The robot achieved a swimming motion similar to that of a fish that bends its body. However, the robot did not achieve the rapid turning motion like a fish due to its low swimming speed. In this paper, the material of the elastic body is changed to improve the swimming speed, and the effect of the change is verified by actual experiments. After developing a modified fish robot for verification, swimming experiments were conducted using two types of elastic materials. From the results of the experiment, it was confirmed that the swimming speed was faster using the hard metal plate than the polypropylene plate.