Behavior of a Bio-Inspired Adaptive Spider Web

This work is focused on the behavior of a passive and an adaptive spider webs. First, dynamic properties and the total energy change of a passive spider web is investigated. To better understand the performance, a model is developed to examine the effects of pretension, Young's modulus and damping ratio on the natural frequency and total energy of the web. Different web materials and configurations such as damaged webs are investigated. Experiments are performed to evaluate the theoretical model. It is demonstrated that the pretension, Young's modulus and damping ratio in the strings can significantly affect the natural frequency and total energy of the full and damaged webs. It is also shown that by increasing the pretension in the radial strings one can compensate for the damaged strings and increase the capability of the damaged web to reach that of the full web.;Next, an adaptive web system is designed to mimic the energy absorption ability of a spider web. To the best knowledge of the author, this is the first attempt to study an adaptive spider web. A finite element model is developed to examine the adaptive system. The pretension in the radial strings of the web is automatically controlled by a microcontroller. This system is able to control the web's energy absorption ability. It is shown that by controlling the pretensions in the radial strings, the web is able to control vibration.