Bioinspired Agile Swimming With a Highly Underactuated Soft Ribbon Fin

Soft autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) that employ biological swimming mechanisms have demonstrated immense promise in navigating marine environments with increased efficiency and adaptability and decreased environmental disturbances in comparison to their rigid counterparts. However, most AUVs with soft propulsors are poorly suited for precise swimming at low speeds and station holding tasks—two capabilities critical to underwater monitoring and manipulation. In contrast, gymnotid fish undu