<p>This study addresses the challenges associated with integrating smart materials, Ionic Polymer-Metal Composites (IPMC), into robotic systems to enhance efficiency and compactness. Smart materials possess unique electromechanical transduction capabilities, making them ideal for small-scale robotic applications by reducing system weight, size, and noise while simplifying structural complexity. However, their inherent non-linearity and sensitivity to environmental conditions require precise real-time feedback control for consistent actuation behavior. This research explores the use of an IPMC-based underwater biomimetic propulsor, where a cantilevered IPMC strip functions as the propulsive tail. The oscillatory motion of the strip generates thrust, and the swimming speed of the propulsor depends on oscillation frequency and transverse displacement of the IPMC strip. Due to the material’s memory-dependent nature, a feedback controller is implemented to regulate the input sinusoidal signal frequency, ensuring stable velocity. A fractional-order transfer function model is developed using experimental data and MATLAB’s FOMCON toolbox. Two types of controller approaches, PID and Inverse Model Controllers, are implemented with integer and fractional-order systems to regulate the velocity of the IPMC Propulsor. Comparisons of the performance of integer-order PID &amp; Inverse Model Controller with the fractional-order PID &amp; fractional-order Inverse Model Controller controllers indicate that fractional-order controllers offer superior accuracy, enhanced controllability, and a broader frequency response range, making them more suitable for IPMC-driven robotic systems.</p>