Autonomous underwater vehicle

Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs) have many applications ranging from submerged pipeline inspection and maintenance to mapping and clearing mine fields. The purpose of this project is to design and construct an AUV capable of navigating in 3 dimensions, and perform elementary autonomous tasks such as obstacle detection and avoidance. The AUV would operate in shallow water (depths of 20 ft or less). It would be suited to applications such as ship hull inspection, bridge inspection, mapping, and photography in shallow waters. This project will provide a platform for future development of AUVs at Drexel, namely the gradual addition of better sensing and navigating capabilities. The complete design for this robot requires construction and integration of several mechanical and electrical sub-systems. A propeller driven mode of locomotion coupled with a ballast system will allow the robot to navigate in 3 dimensions and fix its position (i.e., “hover” in one spot). A communication scheme will be implemented to operate the vessel to depths of 20 ft with an operational radius of 15 ft. A sensor suite comprised of accelerometers, a compass, and transducers will estimate the robot’s orientation and detect obstacles in its path. The robot will require regulated and properly protected power supply and electronics systems. All individual components and subsystems will be tested on land. Following integration, the completed system will be tested in water, with the objective of demonstrating navigational and obstacle detection capabilities. This process will be directed at discovering design tradeoffs and areas where future research and development are needed