Recent Advances in Design, Sensing, and Autonomy of Biomimetic Robotic Fish: A Review

The oceans process abundant resources necessary for human production and livelihood, yet the complex and variable marine environment has continued to limit human capability in detecting and utilizing these resources. Inspired by the excellent mobility of marine life, biomimetic robotic fish have emerged as a new type of autonomous underwater vehicle over the past three decades. In early reviews of robotic fish, researchers classified and discussed based on the fish species and their morphologies. The challenging problems and technological prospects of robotic fish are not revealed thoroughly due to countless species. To provide a comprehensive overview of the latest research advancements, we make a classification focusing on the integrated mechatronic designs of robotic fish. Specifically, eight hot topics concerning the propulsion mechanisms and structural designs of robotic fish have been broadly defined from literature screened with PRISMA process over the past decade, with representative seminal works in each topic being analyzed. Furthermore, this review also introduces the latest advances in underwater perception and autonomous technologies for biomimetic robotic fish, and provides an outlook on their future development. It is expected that by summarizing the latest achievements, researchers can be inspired with novel mechatronic designs to further promote the practicality research of robotic fish.