Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Faraday Disk Dynamo01:23

Faraday Disk Dynamo

2.0K
A Faraday disk dynamo is a DC generator, producing an emf that is constant in time. It consists of a conducting disk that rotates with a constant angular velocity in the magnetic field, perpendicular to the disk's plane. The rotation of the disk causes a change in magnetic flux, which induces an emf, causing opposite charges to develop on the rim and in the center of the disk. The polarity of the induced emf can be determined by the direction of the magnetic field and the direction of the...
2.0K
Kinetic and Potential Energy of a Wave01:10

Kinetic and Potential Energy of a Wave

3.6K
All forms of waves carry energy; this is directly visualized in nature. For instance, the waves of earthquakes are so intense that they can shake huge concrete buildings, causing them to fall. Loud sounds can damage nerve cells in the inner ear, causing permanent hearing loss. The waves of the oceans can erode beaches. 
In mechanical waves, the amount of energy is related to their amplitude and frequency. In the context of the above examples, large-amplitude earthquakes produce large...
3.6K
Conservation of Angular Momentum: Application01:18

Conservation of Angular Momentum: Application

10.8K
A system's total angular momentum remains constant if the net external torque acting on the system is zero. Examples of such systems include a freely spinning bicycle tire that slows over time due to torque arising from friction, or the slowing of Earth's rotation over millions of years due to frictional forces exerted on tidal deformations. However in the absence of a net external torque, the angular momentum remains conserved. The conservation of angular momentum principle requires a...
10.8K
Centrifugal Force01:06

Centrifugal Force

2.7K
Pseudo forces, or fictitious forces, appear to act on an object in motion in a rotating frame of reference with respect to an inertial reference frame. These forces are not real forces but rather mathematical constructs and are introduced to simplify calculations in a non-inertial frame while using Newton's laws of motion. Common examples of pseudo forces include centrifugal, Coriolis, and Euler forces. These forces are essential in fields such as mechanics, astrophysics, and fluid...
2.7K
Torque On A Current Loop In A Magnetic Field01:13

Torque On A Current Loop In A Magnetic Field

3.8K
The most common application of magnetic force on current-carrying wires is in electric motors. These consist of loops of wire, which are placed between the magnets with a magnetic field. When current flows through the loops, the magnetic field applies torque, which causes the shaft to rotate, thus converting electrical energy to mechanical energy.
Consider a rectangular current-carrying loop containing N turns of wire, placed in a uniform magnetic field. The net force on a current-carrying loop...
3.8K
Irrotational Flow01:28

Irrotational Flow

352
Irrotational flow is characterized by fluid motion where particles do not rotate around their axes, resulting in zero vorticity. For a flow to be irrotational, the curl of the velocity field must be zero. This imposes specific conditions on velocity gradients. For instance, to maintain zero rotation about the z-axis, the gradient condition:
352

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Imaging-guided bioresorbable acoustic hydrogel microrobots.

Science robotics·2024
Same author

Fish-inspired tracking of underwater turbulent plumes.

Bioinspiration & biomimetics·2024
Same author

A fundamental propulsive mechanism employed by swimmers and flyers throughout the animal kingdom.

The Journal of experimental biology·2023
Same author

Learning efficient navigation in vortical flow fields.

Nature communications·2021
Same author

Low-power microelectronics embedded in live jellyfish enhance propulsion.

Science advances·2020
Same author

Simultaneous coherent structure coloring facilitates interpretable clustering of scientific data by amplifying dissimilarity.

PloS one·2019
Same journal

On phase transitions to interdisciplinary and convergent research.

PNAS nexus·2026
Same journal

Confident judgments of (mis)information veracity are more, rather than less, accurate.

PNAS nexus·2026
Same journal

Can AI help reduce prejudice? Evaluating the effectiveness of AI-powered personalized persuasion on support for transgender rights.

PNAS nexus·2026
Same journal

A cultural explanation for parole decisions in the United States.

PNAS nexus·2026
Same journal

A transformer-based language model reveals developmental constraint and network complexity during zebrafish embryogenesis.

PNAS nexus·2026
Same journal

Dual phosphoregulatory mechanisms of condensin I revealed by biochemical reconstitution.

PNAS nexus·2026
See all related articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 25, 2025

Preparation of Free-Surface Hyperbolic Water Vortices
04:35

Preparation of Free-Surface Hyperbolic Water Vortices

Published on: July 28, 2023

2.4K

Surfing vortex rings for energy-efficient propulsion.

Peter Gunnarson1, John O Dabiri1,2

  • 1Graduate Aerospace Laboratories, California Institute of Technology, 1200 E California Blvd, Pasadena 91125, USA.

PNAS Nexus
|February 26, 2025
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Autonomous underwater robots can use vortex rings for energy-efficient propulsion. By sensing fluid motion with an inertial measurement unit (IMU), robots can "surf" these vortex rings, significantly reducing energy consumption for travel.

Keywords:
Lagrangian coherent structuresautonomous navigationenergy harvestingflow sensingvortex rings

More Related Videos

A Rapid Method for Modeling a Variable Cycle Engine
04:58

A Rapid Method for Modeling a Variable Cycle Engine

Published on: August 13, 2019

7.5K
Improving the Combustion Performance of a Hybrid Rocket Engine using a Novel Fuel Grain with a Nested Helical Structure
07:58

Improving the Combustion Performance of a Hybrid Rocket Engine using a Novel Fuel Grain with a Nested Helical Structure

Published on: January 18, 2021

5.6K

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: May 25, 2025

Preparation of Free-Surface Hyperbolic Water Vortices
04:35

Preparation of Free-Surface Hyperbolic Water Vortices

Published on: July 28, 2023

2.4K
A Rapid Method for Modeling a Variable Cycle Engine
04:58

A Rapid Method for Modeling a Variable Cycle Engine

Published on: August 13, 2019

7.5K
Improving the Combustion Performance of a Hybrid Rocket Engine using a Novel Fuel Grain with a Nested Helical Structure
07:58

Improving the Combustion Performance of a Hybrid Rocket Engine using a Novel Fuel Grain with a Nested Helical Structure

Published on: January 18, 2021

5.6K

Area of Science:

  • Robotics
  • Fluid Dynamics
  • Autonomous Systems

Background:

  • Leveraging background fluid flows offers potential for enhanced vehicle range and speed.
  • Autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) can benefit from novel propulsion strategies.
  • Vortex rings represent a dynamic fluid structure with propulsion potential.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To demonstrate an autonomous strategy for energy-efficient propulsion using vortex rings.
  • To investigate the use of onboard inertial measurements for interacting with fluid flows.
  • To analyze the entrainment process and energy savings achieved by

Main Methods:

  • An underwater robot equipped with an inertial measurement unit (IMU) was used.
  • The robot sensed motion from an externally generated vortex ring.
  • An impulsive maneuver was employed to entrain the robot into the vortex ring boundary.
  • Analysis included controlled finite-time Lyapunov exponent fields and Lagrangian coherent structures.

Main Results:

  • The robot achieved propulsion by advecting with the vortex ring without additional energy or control effort.
  • A nearly fivefold reduction in energy expenditure was observed compared to swimming in quiescent flow.
  • The study analyzed the entrainment process and its sensitivity to timing and position.
  • Onboard IMU linear acceleration correlated with background flow pressure gradients.

Conclusions:

  • This work provides a proof-of-concept for autonomous vortex ring propulsion.
  • Onboard inertial measurements can enable efficient interaction with background fluid flows.
  • Rotational acceleration is proposed as a method for vorticity measurement.