Did you know; the kingfishers beak has been designed for “splash-less” entry into water bodies? The shape is probably best described as a sharpened ogive. Interestingly enough, ogival design of missile heads achieves a similar objective.
Sadly, train designers are not known for their aerodynamic skills. It was thus not surprising that the Japanese high speed rail link suffered from poor nose design. The effect was massive (a literally “shocking” result), and train entry of tunnels was restricted to below 350km/h.
Amazingly enough, the Japanese rail engineers observed the low splash of kingfisher water entry, and decided to give it a try. After experimentation they learned what decent aerodynamicists already knew, and ended up with a design that has great similarity to the shape of a kingfisher beak. (Actually modern aerodynamics also learned from birds!)
The result has been amazing; 30% air pressure reduction, 15% less electricity use in tunnel sections, and 10% increase in entry speed.
And you thought this was just a pretty face!!!
(Source Mr. Eiji Nakatsu, interviewed by Kazunori Kobayashi)
