I was pretty intrigued by this biomemetic underwater robotic design: https://interestingengineering.com/cuttlefish-like-robots-are-far-more-efficient-than-propeller-powered-machines
It seemed like the sort of soft robotics idea that would be of interest to this community, and it made me wonder about fish swimming in general. ie, using flowio to build something that swims even faster than a cuttlefish - like a shark or dolphin. Even though the propulsion mechanism above is soft, it look looks like they are using conventional rigid controls to operate it.
Perhaps there are even ways to use the flowio system to work an artificial swim bladder to control depth.
Just brainstorming. I think this is a cool project and look forward to seeing where it goes!
Hi Rick, thanks for posting about your interest in underwater propulsion. There are a couple of other people who showed interest in using FlowIO in similar ways, including using FlowIO to change the buoyancy of underwater vehicle, or to shift air between chambers of a vehicle. There is also the possibility of using FlowIO directly with water, but more tests need to be done to confirm the durability of the device when used with an incompressible fluid. And if the device were to be fully submerged in water, we would also need to find a way to protect the electronics.
If there is a strong interest in hydraulic applications of FlowIO, I may work on making a version of the platform better suited for such applications.