Flexible spine increases speed: cheetah

1 of 2 A cheetah in southern Namibia / Joachim Hube.. / License

The spine of the cheetah increases its running speed because its flexiblity allows longer stride lengths.

Biomimicry Taxonomy

	Modify >
	Modify physical state >
	Speed

Biomimetic Application Ideas

Ergonomic chair "spines" Flexible but connected supports

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[Collapse all sections] Summary

"They [plains predators] have effectively lengthened their limbs by making their spine extremely flexible. At full stretch, travelling at high speed, their hind and front legs overlap one another beneath the body just like those of a galloping antelope. The cheetah has a thin elongated body and is said to be the fastest runner on earth, capable of reaching speeds, in bursts, of over 110 kph. But this method is very energy-consuming. Great muscular effort is needed to keep the spine springing back and forth and the cheetah cannot maintain such speeds for more than a minute or so." (Attenborough 1979:264)

About the inspiring organism

Med_800pxacinonyx_jubatus_southern_namibia8

Cheetah
Acinonyx jubatus (Schreber, 1775)
[Hunting leopard]

IUCN Red List Status: Vulnerable

Some organism data provided by: ITIS: The Integrated Taxonomic Information System
Organism/taxonomy data provided by:
Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life: 2008 Annual Checklist

Bioinspired products and application ideas

Application Ideas: Ergonomic chair "spines", other flexible but connected supports.

Industrial Sector(s) interested in this strategy: Manufacturing

References

Attenborough, D. 1979. Life on earth. Boston, MA: Little, Brown and Company. 319 p.