Computational Modeling and Analysis of Biomimetic Flight Mechanisms

Numerical simulations have been used to study the fluid dynamics associated with flapping flight modes of single as well as paired wings. The numerical solver employed is based on a sharp-interface, Cartesian grid method that allows us to simulate flow with moving boundaries on stationary Cartesian grids. Here, the simple case of normal hover is examined and the thrust production and vortex dynamics of a single wing undergoing a combined pitch-and-heave maneuver is analyzed. Following this, the fluid flow associated with a paired wing is examined with particular emphasis on the effect of phase lag between the two wings on thrust production and efficiency.