EAGER/Collaborative Research: Revealing the Physical Mechanisms Underlying the Extraordinary Stability of Flying Insects

This EArly-concept Grant for Exploratory Research (EAGER) investigates how certain insects may tolerate large disturbances during flight, without tumbling out of control. High-speed images of a free-flying hawkmoth showed the insect -- after being impulsively accelerated to a spin rate of 5,000 degrees per second -- returning to normal flight in only a few wing beats. Computer simulations suggest that this rapid recovery may be due to a spring-like force from the air displaced by the sudden motion of the moth’s body. These forces were not previously thought to be important in hawkmoth flight. This project will use mathematical analyses and high-fidelity computer simulations to fully explore and explain this surprising result. The knowledge gained from this work will help safeguard future aircraft; the observed behavior is beyond the capability of current flight control technology. Preliminary analysis suggests that the body-added mass effect plays a central role in the observed ability of the hawkmoth to recover from impulsive acceleration to high pitch rates. This study will apply a combination of theoretical and computational methods to understand the interplay between body flight dynamics and unsteady flow, at timescales significantly faster than the wing beat period. Specific tasks include (i) dynamic analysis of body added mass effects and comparison to existing insect flight disturbance response data; (ii) high-fidelity computational fluid dynamic simulations of added mass effects, and (iii) analysis of added mass effects in the presence of vortical flow. The study will include development of approaches to implement the newly understood high-rate recovery mechanisms on future unpiloted aerial vehicles.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

这项对探索性研究的早期概念赠款（急切）调查了某些昆虫在飞行过程中如何容忍大型灾难，而不会失控。自由飞行的霍克莫斯的高速图像显示了隔热材料 - 冲动加速至每秒5,000度的旋转速度 - 仅在几个翼节拍中恢复正常飞行。计算机模拟表明，这种迅速恢复可能是由于飞蛾的突然运动从空气中产生的弹簧状力。以前，这些力量在霍克莫斯的飞行中并不重要。该项目将使用数学分析和高保真计算机模拟来充分探索和解释这一惊喜结果。从这项工作中获得的知识将有助于保护未来的飞机；观察到的行为超出了当前飞行控制技术的能力。初步分析表明，体内添加的质量效应在观察到的霍克莫斯从冲动加速度恢复到高音高速率的能力中起着核心作用。这项研究将采用理论和计算方法的组合来了解身体飞行动力学和不稳定流量之间的相互作用，在时间尺度上，比机翼搏动时期要快得多。具体任务包括（i）身体的动态分析增加的质量效应以及与现有的昆虫飞行灾害响应数据的比较； （ii）增加质量效应的高保真计算流体动力学模拟，以及（iii）在存在涡流流的存在下增加的质量效应。该研究将包括开发对未来未插入航空车的新知识的高速恢复机制的方法。该奖项反映了NSF的法定任务，并使用基金会的知识分子优点和更广泛的影响评估审查标准，被认为是通过评估而被认为是宝贵的支持。