• Journal of the Korean Society for Aeronautical & Space Sciences
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• v.35 no.1
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• pp.1-9
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• 2007

Numerical simulation is conducted to investigate aerodynamic force generation mechanism for the "figure-of-eight" motion of Dipteran fly, Phormia-Regina. Wing trajectory is referred to experimental result, which was observed from the tethered flight under freestream condition. Numerical simulation shows that the lift is mainly generated during downstroke motion and the large amount of thrust is generated abruptly at the end of upstroke motion. In the present work, vortical structure in the wake and the pressure field around the airfoil are examined to understand the generation of lift and thrust. Consequently, the lift generation is related with the leading edge vortex which is developed by an effective angle of attack. And the thrust generation can be explained by vortex pairing in the flow field and by vortex staying in the pressure field.