Flapping-wing aerial vehicle is a new type of aerial vehicle that mimics the flight mode of birds and insects. The design of airfoil parameters is crucial for improving the performance of flapping wing aerial vehicle. A numerical investigation into the effects of thickness and camber on aerodynamic performance of flapping wings during the forward flight is carried out through the solution of the two-dimensional incompressible unsteady Navier-Stokes equations using the computational fluid dynamics methods. The aerodynamic computational model with varying NACA series standard airfoil thickness and camber is built based on the observation of flying creatures. The aerodynamic forces

energy consumption

flight efficiency and flow field structure of the rigid wings with different incoming flow velocities under low Reynolds number are systematically analyzed using the finite element method coupled with the dynamic mesh method. It is found that the thrust force and energy consumption of the rigid wing with low Reynolds number decrease with increasing wing thickness at different incoming flow velocities

and the decrease in propulsive efficiency can reach as much as 15.9%. The leading edge vortex (LEV) intensity is reduced and the LEV shedding is delayed with the increase of airfoil thickness. On the other hand

the wing camber can change the wing angle of attack effectively. The positive camber can significantly improve the lift force and lifting efficiency and tilt the centerline of the wake towards the bottom right. The flapping wing with positive camber can produce large lift force during the downstroke

while the wing with negative camber can produce large thrust force during the upstroke.