Sound generation in the flapping wing flight of insects

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Flapping wing flight has been topic of recent interest with respect to the maneuverability and agility of insects. Computational fluid dynamics methods have been used to investigate the aerodynamics though typically for incompressible flow. The underlying sound generation mechanism, though of fundamental biological and physical interest, have much less attention. Experimental acoustical and high speed video studies of the Coconut Rhinoceros Beetle (Oryctes rhinoceros) and the Oriental Flower Beetle (Protaetia orientalis) have motivated large scale simulations accounting for three dimension flow, compressibility, and fluid structure interactions. Computational fluid dynamics simulations were performed using the unsteady compressible flow solver (CAESIM, Adaptive Research, Inc.) using a high resolution (TVD) methodology. Models of the wing flapping motion were accomplished using mesh deformation techniques with the flapping following from rotation with prescribed bending and coupled rotation and translation from the wing’s hinge position. Fluid structure interactions with respect to the wing’s flexibility are investigated in terms of the wing bending and the leading edge vortex formation.