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Dynamics, Control, and Stabilization of Turning Flight in Fruit Flies

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Natural Locomotion in Fluids and on Surfaces

Part of the book series: The IMA Volumes in Mathematics and its Applications ((IMA,volume 155))

Abstract

Complex behaviors of flying insects require interactions among sensory-neural systems, wing actuation biomechanics, and flapping-wing aerodynamics. Here, we review our recent progress in understanding these layers for maneuvering and stabilization flight of fruit flies. Our approach combines kinematic data from flying insects and aerodynamic simulations to distill reduced-order mathematical models of flight dynamics, wing actuation mechanisms, and control and stabilization strategies. Our central findings include: (1) During in-flight turns, fruit flies generate torque by subtly modulating wing angle of attack, in effect paddling to push off the air; (2) These motions are generated by biasing the orientation of a biomechanical brake that tends to resist rotation of the wing; (3) A simple and fast sensory-neural feedback scheme determines this wing actuation and thus the paddling motions needed for stabilization of flight heading against external disturbances. These studies illustrate a powerful approach for studying the integration of sensory-neural feedback, actuation, and aerodynamic strategies used by flying insects.

The authors thank the NSF for support.

AMS(MOS) subject classifications. 37N25, 76Z10, 92B05, 70E99

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Physics, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 14853, USA

    Leif Ristroph & Itai Cohen

  2. Department of Engineering, Brown University, Providence, RI, 55555, USA

    Attila J. Bergou

  3. Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, 08544, USA

    Gordon J. Berman

  4. Department of Mathematics, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 14853, USA

    John Guckenheimer

  5. Departments of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and Physics, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 14853, USA

    Z. Jane Wang

Authors
  1. Leif Ristroph
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  2. Attila J. Bergou
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  3. Gordon J. Berman
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  4. John Guckenheimer
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  5. Z. Jane Wang
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  6. Itai Cohen
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Leif Ristroph .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Courant Institute of Math Sciences, New York University, Mercer Street 251, New York City, 10012, New York, USA

    Stephen Childress

  2. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Massachusetts Avenue 77, Cambridge, 02139, Massachusetts, USA

    Anette Hosoi

  3. , Department of Mechanical Engineering, The University of Michigan, Auto Lab 2027, Ann Arbor, 48109, Michigan, USA

    William W. Schultz

  4. , Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, 14850, New York, USA

    Jane Wang

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Ristroph, L., Bergou, A.J., Berman, G.J., Guckenheimer, J., Wang, Z.J., Cohen, I. (2012). Dynamics, Control, and Stabilization of Turning Flight in Fruit Flies. In: Childress, S., Hosoi, A., Schultz, W., Wang, J. (eds) Natural Locomotion in Fluids and on Surfaces. The IMA Volumes in Mathematics and its Applications, vol 155. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-3997-4_6

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