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Chinese Journal of Engineering Design  2025, Vol. 32 Issue (3): 326-333    DOI: 10.3785/j.issn.1006-754X.2025.04.136
Robotic and Mechanism Design     
Design and performance analysis of soft robotic fish based on Water Bomb origami structure
Yu ZHANG(),Kai CHU,Shen SHU,Jialiang WANG,Hao ZHOU,Junfeng HU()
School of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering, Jiangxi University of Science and Technology, Ganzhou 341000, China
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Abstract  

At present, robotic fish made mainly of rigid materials have good control accuracy and relatively fast swimming speed in water. However, due to the high rigidity of rigid materials, the robotic fish usually cannot adapt well to the narrow passages in water. To solve the above problems, the origami structure was applied to the structural design of robotic fish, and a soft robotic fish that could pass through narrow passages in water and had good swimming performance was designed. This robotic fish was composed of a head, a trunk and a tail. The trunk part adopted the Water Bomb origami structure, and the radial change of the trunk part was achieved by the contraction and expansion of the origami structure. The tail used the bending of the soft origami driver to achieve swing, thereby enabling the forward movement and turning of the robotic fish. The movement of the robotic fish in the water tank was measured through experiments. Its maximum swimming speed was 72.67 mm/s, the fastest turning speed was 10.67 (°)/s, and it could move stably under the condition of a maximum load of 150 g. The results show that the designed robotic fish can not only move flexibly in water, but also utilize the folding characteristics of the trunk part to pass through some narrow passages and obstacles, which provides a new idea for the design and research of soft robotic fish.



Key wordssoft robotic fish      soft origami driver      Water Bomb origami structure      folding characteristics     
Received: 30 April 2024      Published: 02 July 2025
CLC:  TH 122  
Corresponding Authors: Junfeng HU     E-mail: 1587402060@qq.com;hjfsuper@126.com
Cite this article:

Yu ZHANG,Kai CHU,Shen SHU,Jialiang WANG,Hao ZHOU,Junfeng HU. Design and performance analysis of soft robotic fish based on Water Bomb origami structure. Chinese Journal of Engineering Design, 2025, 32(3): 326-333.

URL:

https://www.zjujournals.com/gcsjxb/10.3785/j.issn.1006-754X.2025.04.136     OR     https://www.zjujournals.com/gcsjxb/Y2025/V32/I3/326


基于Water Bomb折纸结构的软体机器鱼设计与性能分析

目前,以刚性材料为主体制作的机器鱼在水中具有良好的控制精度和较快的游动速度,但由于刚性材料自身的刚度较高,机器鱼通常无法很好地适应水中的狭窄通道。为了解决上述问题,将折纸结构应用于机器鱼的结构设计,设计了一种可在水中通过狭窄通道且具有良好游动性能的软体机器鱼。该机器鱼由头部、躯干和尾部组成,其中:躯干部分采用Water Bomb折纸结构,利用折纸结构的收缩和膨胀来实现躯干部分的径向变化;尾部利用软体折纸驱动器的弯曲来实现摆动,从而实现机器鱼的前行和转弯。通过实验测得了机器鱼在水箱中的运动情况,其最高游动速度为72.67 mm/s,最快转向速度为10.67 (°)/s,且能在最大负载为150 g的条件下稳定运动。结果表明,所设计的机器鱼不仅可以在水中灵活运动,而且能够利用躯干部分的折叠特性通过部分狭窄通道和障碍。这为软体机器鱼的设计与研究提供了一种新思路。


关键词: 软体机器鱼,  软体折纸驱动器,  Water Bomb折纸结构,  折叠特性 
Fig.1 Three-dimensional model of soft robotic fish based on Water Bomb origami structure
Fig.2 Swimming principle of robotic fish
Fig.3 Structure of soft origami driver
Fig.4 Tail structure of robotic fish
Fig.5 Structure design of head and trunk of robotic fish
Fig.6 Robotic fish prototype and experimental platform
Fig.7 Straight-line swimming speed of robotic fish with different swing frequencies
Fig.8 Straight-line swimming speed of robotic fish with different driving pressures
Fig.9 Schematic of turning motion of robotic fish
Fig.10 Turning speed of robotic fish with different swing frequencies
Fig.11 Turning speed of robotic fish with different driving pressure differences
Fig.12 Straight-line swimming speed of robotic fish with different loads
Fig.13 Demonstration of robotic fish swimming in a straight line
Fig.14 Demonstration of robotic fish turning
Fig.15 Demonstration of robotic fish turning to avoid obstacles
Fig.16 Demonstration of robotic fish passing through narrow passage
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