Enhanced lift and thrust via the translational motion between the thorax-abdomen node and the center of mass of a butterfly with a constructive abdominal oscillation

Chang, Sue-Joan; Lai, Yu-Hsiang; Lin, You-Jun; Yang, Jing‐Tang

doi:10.1103/physreve.102.062407

Cited by 14 publications

(25 citation statements)

References 35 publications

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“…To analyse the effect of the wing-pitch motion among varied cases ( §4), we assumed the wings to be flat plates to separate the effect of the wing-pitch motion from the wing flexibility. Many authors presented satisfactory results using flat plates [34][35][36][37][38]; the use of a flat plate does not affect the natural trend of flight of a butterfly [5,39]. Table 1 shows a comparison of the geometry and features between the experimental butterflies and the butterfly model.…”

Section: Numerical Model and Simulation Schemementioning

confidence: 99%

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Beneficial wake-capture effect for forward propulsion with a restrained wing-pitch motion of a butterfly

et al. 2021

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Unlike other insects, a butterfly uses a small amplitude of the wing-pitch motion for flight. From an analysis of the dynamics of real flying butterflies, we show that the restrained amplitude of the wing-pitch motion enhances the wake-capture effect so as to enhance forward propulsion. A numerical simulation refined with experimental data shows that, for a small amplitude of the wing-pitch motion, the shed vortex generated in the downstroke induces air in the wake region to flow towards the wings. This condition enables a butterfly to capture an induced flow and to acquire an additional forward propulsion, which accounts for more than 47% of the thrust generation. When the amplitude of the wing-pitch motion exceeds 45°, the flow induced by the shed vortex drifts away from the wings; it attenuates the wake-capture effect and causes the butterfly to lose a part of its forward propulsion. Our results provide one essential aerodynamic feature for a butterfly to adopt a small amplitude of the wing-pitch motion to enhance the wake-capture effect and forward propulsion. This work clarifies the variation of the flow field correlated with the wing-pitch motion, which is useful in the design of wing kinematics of a micro-aerial vehicle.

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Section: Numerical Model and Simulation Schemementioning

confidence: 99%

“…To reproduce the free-flying trajectory of a butterfly, one must calculate the transient flight speed in the simulation. The simulation method has been published and validated in our previous articles [5,[38][39][40][41][42].…”

Section: Free-flight Simulationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Beneficial wake-capture effect for forward propulsion with a restrained wing-pitch motion of a butterfly

et al. 2021

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“…From a physical viewpoint, their erratic flight should be related to their unique morphological and kinematic features, e.g. large variation in the inclination of the stroke plane ( Sunada et al, 1993 ); low flapping frequency and broad wings ( Shyy et al, 2013 ); low wing loading ( Zheng et al, 2013 ); heavy weight of the wings relative to the total weight ( Suzuki et al, 2019 ); abdominal oscillation ( Chang et al, 2020 ); and the clapping motion of wings ( Johansson and Henningsson, 2021 ). Thus, the erratic flight of butterflies is a result of the dynamical interactions between the body, wings, and ambient air.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…They showed that the variation of the flapping speed is substantial in one flapping cycle and makes a large difference on the time-averaged aerodynamic forces compared with the flight with a constant speed, and that the flight mode is closely related to the pitching angle of the body. Recently, Chang et al (2020) have extended their model to a four-link, rigid-body system modeling a paper-kite butterfly ( Idea leuconoe ) in forward flight, so that the wing mass and abdominal motion can be considered. In this model, the phase of the abdominal oscillation is tunable, whereas the pitching motion of the thorax is prescribed.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…From the above review about dynamical models of butterflies, we find the importance of the dynamical interactions between the thorax, abdomen, wings, and ambient air in the flapping flight of butterflies. Especially, the effects of the wing mass ( Suzuki et al, 2019 ) and abdominal oscillation ( Chang et al, 2020 ) on the aerodynamic force and torque are essential to be considered in the investigation into the flight dynamics of butterflies. From this viewpoint, the conventional dynamical models of butterflies for take-off flight ( Sunada et al, 1993 ; Bimbard et al, 2013 ) might be insufficient.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Revisiting the flight dynamics of take-off of a butterfly: experiments and CFD simulations for a cabbage white butterfly

et al. 2022

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We conducted measurements of the taking-off motion of a butterfly (Pieris rapae) and numerical simulations using a computational model reflecting its motion. The computational butterfly model is composed of a thorax, an abdomen, and four wings (left and right wings with fore and hind parts), i.e., a six-link rigid-body system. The present model is more sophisticated than the models which have ever constructed in existing studies. In the butterfly model, the body trajectory and thoracic pitching angle can be calculated from the equations of motion, whereas the abdominal angle and wings’ joint angles are prescribed by the measured data. We calculated the flow field and aerodynamic force and torque generated by the butterfly model using the immersed boundary–lattice Boltzmann methodï¼Ž As a result, the butterfly generates the horizontal and vertical vortex rings as well as the aerodynamic lift and thrust forces during the downstroke and upstroke, respectively. The leg impulsion is essential in the upward motion of the taking-off butterfly rather than the aerodynamic lift force by the flapping wings. The inertial forces of the abdomen and wings are comparable in magnitude with the aerodynamic forces, but the net influence of the inertial forces on the position of the butterfly is not significant due to the offsetting of the body and wing inertia. The net aerodynamic and gravitational torques raise the thorax of the butterfly, and the net inertial torques suppress the rise of the thorax.

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Wing–antenna interaction reduces odour fatigue in butterfly odour-tracking flight

Lou,

Lei,

Dong

et al. 2024

J. Fluid Mech.

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Flying insects exhibit remarkable capabilities in coordinating their olfactory sensory system and flapping wings during odour plume-tracking flights. While observations have indicated that their flapping wing motion can ‘sniff’ up the incoming plumes for better odour sampling range, how flapping motion impacts the odour concentration field around the antennae is unknown. Here, we reconstruct the body and wing kinematics of a forwards-flying butterfly based on high-speed images. Using an in-house computational fluid dynamics solver, we simulate the unsteady flow field and odourant transport process by solving the Navier–Stokes and odourant advection-diffusion equations. Our results show that, during flapping flight, the interaction between wing leading-edge vortices and antenna vortices strengthens the circulation of antenna vortices by over two-fold compared with cases without flapping motion, leading to a significant increase in odour intensity fluctuation along the antennae. Specifically, the interaction between the wings and antennae amplifies odour intensity fluctuations on the antennae by up to 8.4 fold. This enhancement is critical in preventing odour fatigue during odour-tracking flights. Further analysis reveals that this interaction is influenced by the inter-antennal angle. Adjusting this angle allows insects to balance between resistance to odour fatigue and the breadth of odour sampling. Narrower inter-antennal angles enhance fatigue resistance, while wider angles extend the sampling range but reduce resistance. Additionally, our findings suggest that while the flexibility of the wings and the thorax's pitching motion in butterflies do influence odour fluctuation, their impact is relatively secondary to that of the wing–antenna interaction.

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Enhanced lift and thrust via the translational motion between the thorax-abdomen node and the center of mass of a butterfly with a constructive abdominal oscillation

Cited by 14 publications

References 35 publications

Beneficial wake-capture effect for forward propulsion with a restrained wing-pitch motion of a butterfly

Beneficial wake-capture effect for forward propulsion with a restrained wing-pitch motion of a butterfly

Revisiting the flight dynamics of take-off of a butterfly: experiments and CFD simulations for a cabbage white butterfly

Wing–antenna interaction reduces odour fatigue in butterfly odour-tracking flight

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