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A group of Bath engineers have developed a robot fish which could swim like a wave using its single fin. According to the scientists, the robot fish, Gymnobot is smarter than the low-cost polymer fish developed by MIT and it can ripple using its two crankshafts fit inside its body,
The robot fish is designed taking a clue from the freshwater knifefish, which can ripple inside water in both forward and backward directions. It can also hover around using its elongated ventral fins. When the hundreds of fin rays oscillate at a time, then it creates a wave in water.
This new model is a step forward to motivate the scientists to design a lighter and more efficient robotic submersible objects.
Gymnobot can be used in a number of applications, like studying biodiversity in oceans and rivers to detect environmental pollution. It can also be used in shallower water without being caught in reeds.
According to the lead scientist, William Megill, Gymnobot can be made more energy efficient, which would help it in more applications. Manta Ray is another robot being used by the scientists to study fish stocks in the inlets of British Columbia.
