Attaining the information of the hydrodynamic flow rate and direction is essential to the maneuvering of autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs). This work presents a pillar-based flow sensor that measures hydrodynamic flow rate and direction. We propose a design that mimic the working principle of the neuromast, a ubiquitous organ in fishes that sense the water flow. By utilizing advances in piezo-resistive pressure sensors and 3D printing technology, sensor fabrication becomes fast and cost-effective, owing to reductions in labor and material cost for small batches. Measured results showed that the sensor sensitivity was 9.24 mV/m/s in the single mode and 20.3 mV/m/s in the differential mode. The resolution of the flow sensor was measured to be 4.93 mm/s in the water tunnel testing. The angular resolution of the flow sensor was 2.25°.

获得水动力流速和方向信息对于操纵水下自动航行器（AUV）至关重要。这项工作提出了一种基于支柱的流量传感器，可测量流体动力流量和方向。我们提出了一种模仿神经桅杆的工作原理的设计，神经桅杆是鱼类中感应水流的无处不在的器官。通过利用压阻式压力传感器和3D打印技术的进步，由于减少了小批量的人工和材料成本，传感器的制造变得快速且具有成本效益。测量结果表明，传感器灵敏度在单模下为9.24 mV / m / s，在差模下为20.3 mV / m / s。在水通道测试中，流量传感器的分辨率为4.93 mm / s。流量传感器的角分辨率为2.25°。