Aeromechanics of Hovering Flight in Perturbed Flows: Insights from Computational Models and Animal Experiments

TL;DR

This study combines computational models and animal experiments to investigate how hawkmoths stabilize their hovering flight in disturbed flows, providing insights for MAV design.

Contribution

It introduces a coupled CFD and motion model alongside experimental data to understand insect stabilization mechanisms during hover.

Findings

Identified potential stabilization mechanisms in hawkmoths.

Validated computational models with live animal experiments.

Provided insights applicable to MAV stability design.

Abstract

Stability of flapping flight, a natural requirement for flying insects, is one of the major challenges for designing micro aerial vehicles (MAVs). To better understand how a flying insect could stabilize itself during hover, we have employed a fully coupled computational model, which combines the Navier-Strokes equations and the equations of motion in six degrees-of-freedom (NS6DOF) to model the hovering flight of a hawkmoth. These simulations are combined with high-speed videogrammetry experiments on live, untethered hawkmoths flying in quiescent and perturbed flows. The flight videos were used to identify a potential mechanism that could be used by the moth to stabilize its hovering flight; the effectiveness of this mechanism was investigated using CFD-based simulations and semi-analytic approximations.