Synchronised Swimming of Two Fish
Guido Novati, Siddhartha Verma, Dmitry Alexeev, Diego Rossinelli, Wim, M. van Rees, Petros Koumoutsakos

TL;DR
This study uses two-dimensional fluid dynamics simulations to explore how synchronized swimming between two fish-like bodies can reduce energy expenditure and improve efficiency, highlighting flow interactions and adaptive behaviors.
Contribution
It introduces a novel analysis of synchronized fish swimming, demonstrating energy savings and efficiency gains through flow-mediated interactions and reinforcement learning-based coordination.
Findings
Up to 30% reduction in energy expenditure for the follower.
20% increase in swimming efficiency for the follower.
Flow interactions can lead to drag reduction and intermittent thrust generation.
Abstract
We study the fluid dynamics of two fish-like bodies with synchronised swimming patterns. Our studies are based on two-dimensional simulations of viscous incompressible flows. We distinguish between motion patterns that are externally imposed on the swimmers and self-propelled swimmers that learn manoeuvres to achieve certain goals. Simulations of two rigid bodies executing pre-specified motion indicate that flow-mediated interactions can lead to substantial drag reduction and may even generate thrust intermittently. In turn we examine two self-propelled swimmers arranged in a leader-follower configuration, with a-priori specified body-deformations. We find that the swimming of the leader remains largely unaffected, while the follower experiences either an increase or decrease in swimming speed, depending on the initial conditions. Finally, we consider a follower that synchronises its…
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Taxonomy
TopicsBiomimetic flight and propulsion mechanisms · Lattice Boltzmann Simulation Studies · Micro and Nano Robotics
