Idhaya – Engineering & Technology Blog, Industrial & Mechanical Engineering Information

Mechanical engineering experts are increasingly turning to nature when looking for aircraft mechanical design inspiration.

In an attempt to develop more fuel efficient aircraft in line with environmental compliance, engineers are looking to the natural world to explore new mechanical design techniques which may one day feature on commercial airliners.

By studying the flight of birds and features of other animals, engineers can find new ways to reduce drag and better equip aircraft to adjust to changing weather conditions whilst in the air.

Known as biomimicry, engineers use aspects of the natural world to come up with mechanical design in a variety of modern day designs that affect our everyday lives and the way we travel for example.

Boeing has been following the developments in the biomimicry field so closely that the group has even sent engineering teams to Costa Rica to search for new ideas for mechanical design.

These trips have been organised by the Biomimicry Guild, and co-founder Dayna Baumeister believes that the future of aircraft design will be heavily influenced by designs from nature. She also helps organise workshops in Costa Rica and Peru for engineers coming from companies such as Boeing.

She says: “I’m almost 100% certain that flight as we know it today will not be flight as our children know it.”
David Hills, senior manager of flight physics research at Airbus has admitted that by looking to what the natural world offers around us, the aviation sector can find new ways to develop and design new features for the aircraft of the future.

Speaking to Flight Global he said: “Biomimicry is looking at how you can use Mother Nature as a measure.
“It is looking to the biological system and seeing where you can find guidance and inspiration and solutions that are free from the trappings of civil aeronautical design.”

And now engineers at The Fraunhofer Institute in Germany have come up with a mechanical design technique inspired by shark skin.

By developing a paint based on the structure of the skin, grooves that are similar to aircraft riblets can be applied to the coating of the aircraft.

As the paint contains nanoparticals the aircraft will be in a better position to deal with changing temperatures and conditions during flight.

Yvonne Wilke from the Institute now believes the paint would help the aviation industry save up to 4.48 million tonnes of fuel each year. The product could even be made available for commercial use in the next three to eight years however at present it is still in the development stage.

She said: “There is interest and there are projects on this paint and its application in the aircraft industry and the ship-building sector.

“All of these projects are in the phase of carrying out technical experiments.”
Another aspect of the natural world that may feature in aviation design components is by using fish slime to reduce drag on the aircraft as it travels through the air.

If till yet you are confused about what environmental engineering consists of  then let me explain you the term briefly, it is the practice of science and engineering principals that aims to ameliorate the atmosphere and make the air, water, land healthy for the habitation of human beings and other organisms existing on earth. The environmental engineers invent strategies that are helpful in controlling water and air pollution, waste disposal, public health issues etc. The scope of environmental engineering is quite wide, as we know that there are distinctive ranges of pollutants which can be chemical, biological, thermal, radioactive or mechanical, thus there is a great need that have to be emphasized in these areas. The programs for environmental engineering are under the guidance of Civil engineering or chemical engineering services. In other words civil engineering also deals with planning and maintenance of things that relate to environment.

There are several amounts of consultants available that specializes in all the areas of engineering, these engineering consultants have a wide range experience in developing large as well as small scale projects.  But before we know more about these consultants, you should be aware about why there is a need of such services. As the environmental destruction is gaining momentum there is a serious need of developing methods that can be applied to reduce the harm of any kind of disasters. Even consumers are aware about the damage being done and to stop these disasters one has to acquire relevant methods that are developed by the environmental engineering consultants.

Till now you must be clear with the fact that environment consultant plays a crucial in maintaining a healthy atmosphere, well atleast the people of Auckland can avail best engineering consultant KEA Consultants is a proficient name that have expertise services in the field of engineering, surveying and planning. They have a team of expert professionals, technicians and engineers who have developed methods to cater the needs of each customer.Morever the firm has collaborations with research and educational facilities across the Auckland region, their trained professionals avail the latest software. Modern engineering design software comprises of a GPS capability and the latest survey equipment which are able to construct and supervise in the construction field. The New Zealand Company has developed   three successful offices around the North Island; head office is situated on the central Auckland, while the other two are in Manswhai and Hamilton.