Journal
ACTA MECHANICA SINICA
Volume 31, Issue 2, Pages 181-190Publisher
SPRINGER HEIDELBERG
DOI: 10.1007/s10409-015-0399-4
Keywords
Woodpecker; Muscle torque; High impact velocity; Whipping; Hinged rod
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Funding
- National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) [11372163]
- National Fundamental Research Program of China [2011CB610305]
- NSFC Key Project [11032001]
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To understand how a woodpecker is able accelerate its head to such a high velocity in a short amount of time, a multi-rigid-segment model of a woodpecker's body is established in this study. Based on the skeletal specimen of the woodpecker and several videos of woodpeckers pecking, the parameters of a three-degree-of-freedom system are determined. The high velocity of the head is found to be the result of a whipping effect, which could be affected by muscle torque and tendon stiffness. The mechanism of whipping is analyzed by comparing the response of a hinged rod to that of a rigid rod. Depending on the parameters, the dynamic behavior of a hinged rod is classified into three response modes. Of these, a high free-end velocity could be achieved in mode II. The model is then generalized to a multihinge condition, and the free-end velocity is found to increase with hinge number, which explains the high free-end velocity resulting from whipping. Furthermore, the effects of some other factors, such as damping and mass distribution, on the velocity are also discussed.
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