Bio Inspired Covert Electrostatic Propulsor (BICEP): A Future Vision for Autonomous Underwater Vehicles

The underwater robots of the future may not look like robots at all. The BICEP system uses artificial muscles to oscillate a fishlike tail silently through the water. This university–government–industry research collaboration is taking soft robotics out of the lab and into the real world. The BICEP flexing tail replaces the traditional electric motors AUVs use for propulsion. This vision for AUV propulsion of the future is close to neutrally buoyant, can operate at any ocean depth, and is virtually undetectable by underwater sensing systems.