ILLIMITED LAB

Our Aeronautics and Astronautics Dept. just released three professional certificates in controls, composites and modern structures. Please spread the word to anyone who wants to learn from some of the world renowned experts in aerospace and earn professional aerospace certificates along the way.

Our researchers are drawing inspiration from nature to revolutionize underwater vehicle design! The unique undulatory propulsion seen in the swimming abilities of stingrays and other batoids opens up a realm of quiet, sustainable possibilities for the next generation of underwater vehicles. John Michael Racy, a University of Washington Mechanical Engineering student in A&A's ILLIMITED LAB, and PhD candidate Bart Boom are studying stingrays and other batoids to unlock the secrets of efficient undulatory propulsion. Under the guidance of Prof. Ed Habtour and collaborating with Prof. Adam Summers and Prof. Tadd Truscott, they're combining biology, physics, and engineering to create bio-inspired robotic designs. This interdisciplinary approach could lead to faster, more maneuverable, quieter, and more efficient underwater propulsion systems. The potential applications range from autonomous survey vehicles to entirely new classes of high-performance underwater craft. Proud to see our University of Washington College of Engineering students and faculty pushing the boundaries of innovation! Read the full story: https://lnkd.in/gcJ-2BNR #UWEngineering #Biomimicry

If you have NSF-funded projects, please encourage your students to submit posters to ASME (The American Society of Mechanical Engineers) IMECE (Nov. 17-21, 2024, Portland, OR). Students, if you worked on NSF-funded research, please talk to your advisor about submitting. There are many opportunities to receive travel awards ($1000 each) and win poster competition awards. Topic 16-1: NSF-Funded Research (Grad & Undergrad) Topic 16-2: NSF Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU). July 16: Poster Abstract Submission deadline July 30: Abstract Acceptance Notification Thanks due to Drs. Po-Hao Huang, Constance Meadors, and Aaron Mazzeo for organizing this! I am looking forward to meeting many of you in Portland Oregon this November!

This robot is inspired by nature transformers, such as Gannets. Gannets are dividing birds that plunge into water at high velocity to capture their prey. The robot is built by University of Washington undergraduate engineering students.

https://lnkd.in/g2yX_Vwd

We are ending the academic year strong with awards for divingbirds inspired fly-swim drone, stingray-inspire self propulsive actuation, and spiderweb-like sensing without sensors. So honored and lucky to work with super brainiacs at the illimited Lab and generous US and international collaborators.

John Michael Racy won second place for his undergraduate poster presentation during A&A's 🦈 SHARC Week on "Batoid Dynamics: Bioinspired Structures and Undulatory Propulsion!" His research explores novel designs for undulatory propulsion inspired by the morphology of batoid (ray) fins. His simplified plate models allow characterization of modal frequencies and shapes using dynamic digital image correlation. These insights from across the functional diversity of batoid species will inform future bio-inspired propulsion systems. Kudos to A&A's Illimited Lab and Racy's mentors/collaborators Ed Habtour and Bart Boom! Access his poster and more: https://lnkd.in/g7kgqmFv