MORE | Spring 2019

Force Measurement of Basilisk Lizard Running on Water

The goal of this research is to characterize the force interactions of a basilisk lizard exhibiting its unique ability to run across a body of water. A rigid testing structure is being fabricated from carbon fiber and aluminum, with six-axis force sensors attached at three statically determined points. The structure will be immersed in water, at which point a lizard will run across. Control surface integration can then be used to fully characterize the forces over time. It is recommended that future research explore the application of this data to bio-inspired robots to enable them to similarly “run” across water.