Biomimicry

[cons]

Originally Posted by RobertSmalls

Nature produces some things that are highly optimized by tens of thousands of generations of trial-and-error. But unless you are building a whale, nature's solution may not be an optimal one.

Biomimetics is a source of some inspiration for novel innovations, but it also spawns loads and loads of gimmicky products. I would file dimpled/tuberculated fan blades under "gimmick". Dimpled fans have been around for a while, but they don't appear to offer any advantage, at least in small (4-12cm) fan and desk fan applications.

I agree for the most part, but if you watch Janine's TED talk, I don't think she's dealing with gimmicks. She probably wouldn't make it onto TED with gimmicks.
Watch the TED talk. It starts slow, but when you see that a high speed bullet train is inspired by a Kingfisher, or next gen solar from photosynthesis, or desalination tech from our kidneys, these are potentially radical solutions that we should have been watching all along.
Skeptical optimism

[Zerohour]

This may have some application to vehicles...although not quite that much.

Ive you'ver ever seen a few pictures of this,

The whale tale is designed into the body to help smooth airflow over the car during cornering

[gone-ot]

Originally Posted by winkosmosis

I for one don't like this. They may be more efficient but the lumpy edge is ugly!! I just hope cars don't end up with weird lumps on leading edges.

...yeah, but they'd go well with the golf-ball dimpling for more & better mpg!








(wink,wink)

[cons]

Originally Posted by winkosmosis

I for one don't like this. They may be more efficient but the lumpy edge is ugly!! I just hope cars don't end up with weird lumps on leading edges.

I don't know if this will be readily applicable to cars. As for aesthetics, I think if you painted the blade like a humpback whale fin, and it was shaped like one, that would be pretty wild. Maybe have a whale tail for the vertical fin. Either way, noise I think is often a bigger issue than aesthetics (though I think they do look pretty cool, and they look better knowing it's from a whale's handywork). And efficiency trumps all. If this is what it claims, it's pretty damn sweet.

[Otto]

Originally Posted by Patrick

Their video sure didn't match their commentary. The airflow was doing the exact same thing where they had the tubercles as where there were none.

Compare to this fan: FSEC-CR-1059-99

Or, you can go to any RC model hobby shop, buy some balsa airfoil wing sections, and attach them to your ceiling fan motor hub.