Rethinking the four-wing problem in plesiosaur swimming using bio-inspired decentralized control
Abstract A locomotor system that can function across different environmental conditions and produce a range of performances is one of the most critical abilities needed for extant and extinct animals in order to survive and maximise their competitive fitness. Recent engineering-inspired paleontologi...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Nature Portfolio
2024-10-01
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| Series: | Scientific Reports |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-55805-z |
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| author | Akira Fukuhara Mitsutoshi Sato Hisayuki Ogawa Tamaki Sato William Sellers Akio Ishiguro |
| author_facet | Akira Fukuhara Mitsutoshi Sato Hisayuki Ogawa Tamaki Sato William Sellers Akio Ishiguro |
| author_sort | Akira Fukuhara |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract A locomotor system that can function across different environmental conditions and produce a range of performances is one of the most critical abilities needed for extant and extinct animals in order to survive and maximise their competitive fitness. Recent engineering-inspired paleontological studies have reconstructed feasible locomotor patterns in extinct animals. However, it is still challenging to describe how extinct animals successfully adjust their locomotor patterns to new situations (e.g., changes in locomotor speed and morphology). In this study, we develop a novel reconstruction method based on a bio-inspired control system. We focus on plesiosaurs, an extinct aquatic reptile group which has two pairs of flipper-shaped limbs, and demonstrate that a highly optimised, flexible locomotor pattern for all four flippers can be reconstructed based on a decentralized control scheme formulated from extant animals’ locomotion. The results of our robotic experiments show that a simple, local sensory feedback mechanism allows the plesiosaur-like robot to exploit the fluid flow between the flippers and generate efficient swimming patterns in response to changes in locomotor conditions. Our new method provides further evidence how decentralized control systems can produce a pathway between extinct and extant animals in order to understand the how extinct animals moved and how these movement patterns may have evolved. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-f40b9594e6bf44759ebafe90bbb3608c |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2045-2322 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-10-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Scientific Reports |
| spelling | doaj-art-f40b9594e6bf44759ebafe90bbb3608c2025-02-02T12:25:07ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222024-10-0114111310.1038/s41598-024-55805-zRethinking the four-wing problem in plesiosaur swimming using bio-inspired decentralized controlAkira Fukuhara0Mitsutoshi Sato1Hisayuki Ogawa2Tamaki Sato3William Sellers4Akio Ishiguro5Research Institute of Electrical Communication, Tohoku UniversityResearch Institute of Electrical Communication, Tohoku UniversityResearch Institute of Electrical Communication, Tohoku UniversityDepartment of Biological Sciences, Kanagawa UniversityDepartment of Earth and Environmental Sciences, The University of ManchesterResearch Institute of Electrical Communication, Tohoku UniversityAbstract A locomotor system that can function across different environmental conditions and produce a range of performances is one of the most critical abilities needed for extant and extinct animals in order to survive and maximise their competitive fitness. Recent engineering-inspired paleontological studies have reconstructed feasible locomotor patterns in extinct animals. However, it is still challenging to describe how extinct animals successfully adjust their locomotor patterns to new situations (e.g., changes in locomotor speed and morphology). In this study, we develop a novel reconstruction method based on a bio-inspired control system. We focus on plesiosaurs, an extinct aquatic reptile group which has two pairs of flipper-shaped limbs, and demonstrate that a highly optimised, flexible locomotor pattern for all four flippers can be reconstructed based on a decentralized control scheme formulated from extant animals’ locomotion. The results of our robotic experiments show that a simple, local sensory feedback mechanism allows the plesiosaur-like robot to exploit the fluid flow between the flippers and generate efficient swimming patterns in response to changes in locomotor conditions. Our new method provides further evidence how decentralized control systems can produce a pathway between extinct and extant animals in order to understand the how extinct animals moved and how these movement patterns may have evolved.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-55805-z |
| spellingShingle | Akira Fukuhara Mitsutoshi Sato Hisayuki Ogawa Tamaki Sato William Sellers Akio Ishiguro Rethinking the four-wing problem in plesiosaur swimming using bio-inspired decentralized control Scientific Reports |
| title | Rethinking the four-wing problem in plesiosaur swimming using bio-inspired decentralized control |
| title_full | Rethinking the four-wing problem in plesiosaur swimming using bio-inspired decentralized control |
| title_fullStr | Rethinking the four-wing problem in plesiosaur swimming using bio-inspired decentralized control |
| title_full_unstemmed | Rethinking the four-wing problem in plesiosaur swimming using bio-inspired decentralized control |
| title_short | Rethinking the four-wing problem in plesiosaur swimming using bio-inspired decentralized control |
| title_sort | rethinking the four wing problem in plesiosaur swimming using bio inspired decentralized control |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-55805-z |
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