TechTalks from event: Technical session talks from ICRA 2012

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Marine Robotics I

  • Towards Improving Mission Execution for Autonomous Gliders with an Ocean Model and Kalman Filter Authors: Smith, Ryan N.; Kelly, Jonathan; Sukhatme, Gaurav
    Effective execution of a planned path by an underwater vehicle is important for proper analysis of the gathered science data, as well as to ensure the safety of the vehicle during the mission. Here, we propose the use of an unscented Kalman filter to aid in determining how the planned mission is executed. Given a set of waypoints that define a planned path and a dicretization of the ocean currents from a regional ocean model, we present an approach to determine the time interval at which the glider should surface to maintain a prescribed tracking error, while also limiting its time on the ocean surface. We assume practical mission parameters provided from previous field trials for the problem set up, and provide the simulated results of the Kalman filter mission planning approach. The results are initially compared to data from prior field experiments in which an autonomous glider executed the same path without pre-planning. Then, the results are validated through field trials with multiple autonomous gliders implementing different surfacing intervals simultaneously while following the same path.
  • Position and Velocity Filters for Intervention AUVs Based on Single Range and Depth Measurements Authors: Viegas, Daniel; Batista, Pedro; Oliveira, Paulo; Silvestre, Carlos
    This paper proposes novel cooperative navigation solutions for an Intervention Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (I-AUV) working in tandem with an Autonomous Surface Craft (ASC). The I-AUV is assumed to be moving in the presence of constant unknown ocean currents, and aims to estimate its position relying on measurements of its range to the ASC and of its depth relatively to the sea level. Two different scenarios are considered: in one, the ASC transmits its position and velocity to the I-AUV, while in the other the ASC transmits only its position, and the I-AUV has access to measurements of its velocity relative to the ASC. A sufficient condition for observability and a method for designing state observers with Globally Asymptotically Stable (GAS) error dynamics are presented for both problems. Finally, simulation results are included and discussed to assess the performance of the proposed solutions in the presence of measurement noise.
  • Uncertainty-Driven View Planning for Underwater Inspection Authors: Hollinger, Geoffrey; Englot, Brendan; Hover, Franz; Mitra, Urbashi; Sukhatme, Gaurav
    We discuss the problem of inspecting an underwater structure, such as a submerged ship hull, with an autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV). In such scenarios, the goal is to construct an accurate 3D model of the structure and to detect any anomalies (e.g., foreign objects or deformations). We propose a method for constructing 3D meshes from sonar-derived point clouds that provides watertight surfaces, and we introduce uncertainty modeling through non-parametric Bayesian regression. Uncertainty modeling provides novel cost functions for planning the path of the AUV to minimize a metric of inspection performance. We draw connections between the resulting cost functions and submodular optimization, which provides insight into the formal properties of active perception problems. In addition, we present experimental trials that utilize profiling sonar data from ship hull inspection.
  • Formation Control of Underactuated Autonomous Surface Vessels Using Redundant Manipulator Analogs Authors: Bishop, Bradley
    In this paper, we present a method utilizing redundant manipulator analogs for formation control of underactuated autonomous surface vessels (ASVs) with realistic turning constraints and dynamics. The method used relies on casting the swarm as a single entity and utilizing redundant manipulator techniques to guarantee task-level formation control as well as obstacle avoidance and secondary tasks such as mean position control. The method presented differs from other approaches in that the units herein represent a larger class of ASVs with realistic limitations on vessel motions and that the exact position of each of the units on the formation profile is not specified.
  • Delayed State Information Filter for USBL-Aided AUV Navigation Authors: Ribas, David; Ridao, Pere; Mallios, Angelos; Palomeras, Narcis
    This paper presents a navigation system for an Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) which merges standard dead reckoning navigation data with absolute position fixes from an Ultra-Short Base Line (USBL) system. Traditionally, the USBL transceiver is located on the surface, which makes necessary to feed the position fixes back to the AUV by means of an acoustic modem. An Information filter, which maintains a bounded circular buffer of past vehicle poses, is in charge of the sensor data fusion while dealing with de delays induced by the acoustic communication. The method is validated using a data set gathered for a dam inspection task.
  • Miniature Underwater Glider: Design, Modeling, and Experimental Results Authors: Zhang, Feitian; Thon, John; Thon, Cody; Tan, Xiaobo
    The concept of gliding robotic fish combines gliding and fin-actuation mechanisms to realize energy-efficient locomotion and high maneuverability, and holds strong promise for mobile sensing in versatile aquatic environments. In this paper we present the modeling and design of a miniature fish-like glider, a key enabling component for gliding robotic fish. The full dynamics of the glider is first derived and then reduced to the sagittal plane, where the lift, drag, and pitch moment coefficients are obtained as linear or quadratic functions of the attack angle based on computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis. The model is used to design the glider by accommodating stringent constraints on dimensions yet meeting the desired specification on speed. A fully untethered prototype of underwater glider is developed, with a weight of 4 kg and length of 40 cm. With a net buoyancy of 20 g, it realizes a steady gliding speed of 20 cm/s. The volume and net buoyancy of this glider are less than 10% and 5%, respectively, of those of reported gliders in the literature, and its speed per unit net buoyancy is over 9 times of those other vehicles. Experimental results have shown that the model is able to capture well both the steady glide behavior under different control inputs, and the dynamics during transients.