光纤微缆对SARV操纵性的影响分析

以新概念小型自治遥控水下机器人SARV及其光纤微缆系统为研究对象,在对光纤微缆进行受力分析的基础上,采用集中质量法建立了光纤微缆的动力学模型。结合作业中SARV载体的实际运动,利用直接计算法分析了不同运动状态下光纤微缆对SARV载体产生的附加力和附加力矩及其对SARV载体操纵性的影响,并提出了合理的操纵建议。为SARV载体端设计光纤微缆释放装置张力控制提供了一定的理论依据,在一定程度上有助于完善SARV控制系统,提高SARV航行的稳定性。

水下机器人多功能作业工具包

本文首先阐述了水下机器人作业工具包的重要性 ,重点研究了水下机械手的原理、功能及两种主要结构 .并以沈阳自动化所研制的缆控水下机器人为背景 ,讨论了水下作业工具包的一些专用工具的原理及其结构

液压系统在水下机器人的应用

本文结合在中型、大型水下机器人液压系统的设计、安装、调试的经验和体会,阐述液压系统在水下机器人应用的技术特点和技术措施,为水下液压系统设计提供借鉴.

北极冰下自主/遥控机器人控制系统设计与实现

自主/遥控水下机器人是近年来出现的一种新型水下机器人，其自带能源，通过微光缆与水面支持系统相连接，既具有自治水下机器人大范围自主航行的能力，又具有遥控水下机器人定点操作能力，提高了自治水下机器人实时获取数据的能力，扩大了遥控水下机器人的作业范围。由于自主/遥控水下机器人工作方式的灵活性和多样性，其必将会在海洋监测、军事等方面有越来越广泛的应用。 北极是反映全球气候变化的敏感地区，目前世界各国对北极的考察规模越来越大，对极地海洋的探索力度也大幅度增加。由于自主/遥控水下机器人具有灵活的工作方式，将其应用到北极冰下海洋环境监测中，便于满足北极科考的需求。本论文以科考需求为背景，将自主/遥控水下机器人应用到北极海洋环境监测中，为搭载的测量设备提供一个基本的运动平台。 本论文以实现自主/遥控水下机器人控制系统功能为目的，在深入研究已有水下机器人控制系统结构的基础上，开展自主/遥控水下机器人的控制系统软件和硬件设计与实现工作。将CAN总线与PC/104总线应用到自主/遥控水下机器人控制系统中，实现了一种分布式与集中式相结合的控制系统体系结构，将控制系统的可扩展性、实时性、可靠性等结合在一起。 以作者的实际工作为基础，介绍了自主/遥控水下机器人控制系统软、硬件的设计与实现。采用基于CAN总线技术的分布式控制系统体系结构；采用基于PC104嵌入式计算机的数字控制方案进行航行控制系统硬件设计与系统配置；采用嵌入式单片机做为分系统的控制器；在QNX操作系统下用C语言编写水下控制系统软件，采用模块化和标准化的设计思想，将水下控制系统软件分化多个功能模块，每个模块由不同的进程来实现。 实际实验结果表明，本文所设计的控制系统能够达到预期目标；所设计底层硬件系统和底层驱动软件能够给机器人的上层控制软件提供一个稳定基础。

北极冰下自主/遥控水下机器人导航与轨迹跟踪研究

将水下机器人用于极地科考，可以通过其携带的多种传感器和设备进行大范围、长时间的冰下观测作业，并取得重要的极地科考资料，如冰下水纹，海冰厚度等。而这些观测数据必须与准确的浮冰位置信息相结合才有实用价值，但北极高纬度特性和长期覆盖的大范围海冰使得一些传统水下机器人导航技术难以有效实施，所以需要研究一种能在北极冰下具有良好性能和高可靠性的导航系统。同时，对北极海冰进行的一系列科学考察，需要载体能够沿着浮冰上预定轨迹航行，但由于海流等外界影响的存在，浮冰处于实时运动中，所以要顺利完成科考任务，必须有相应的轨迹跟踪算法作为支撑。 本文正是针对以上这两点需求，在充分考虑环境特殊性的情况下，研究了水下机器人在北极冰下的导航与轨迹跟踪问题，提出了基于GPS测向仪冰面修正的水下机器人自主导航技术和基于制导控制器的浮冰轨迹跟踪方法，并进行了仿真和实物测试，试验结果表明本文所研究的导航设计方案和浮冰轨迹跟踪方法合理，可以达到北极冰下科考的定位精度和作业要求。 主要工作包括：（1）ARV导航系统设计。详细研究了各导航传感器的输出信息；坐标系定义、坐标变换、相对于浮冰的航位推算以及绝对坐标的求解；最后详细研究了整个冰下导航系统。（2）ARV导航系统误差分析。首先对各传感器的误差进行了详细分析；接着通过分析整个导航算法，建立了浮冰坐标系下ARV位置误差传递方程；最后通过引入具体传感器的参数指标，数值计算了整个导航系统的精度。（3）浮冰轨迹跟踪系统设计。首先对水下机器人在冰下的航迹进行了描述；接着分析了两种冰下制导控制器，视线法制导和横向轨迹误差法制导；最后详细研究了整个ARV航迹控制系统。（4）浮冰轨迹跟踪算法仿真。详细讨论了北极“ARV”的水平面动力学模型。并结合模型对浮冰轨迹跟踪算法进行了Matlab和视景仿真，验证了算法的合理性。（5）湖试和海试结果分析。通过对ARV棋盘山湖试和北极冰下海试数据分析，定量说明了导航误差和轨迹跟踪性能。

一种先进的轻型水下机器人——金鱼Ⅲ号

本文叙及一种新的轻型水下机器人(亦称无人遥控潜水器或ROV)——金鱼Ⅱ号。概要地描述了它的主要技术特点,系统总体结构,简要工作原理,及其适用范围。文中以在丰满电站进行实际作业为例,说明了该型水下机器人的应用前景。

Soft sediment ecology of Lough Hyne Marine Reserve - spatial and temporal patterns

Distribution of soft sediment benthic fauna and the environmental factors affecting them were studied, to investigate changes across spatial and temporal scales. Investigations took place at Lough Hyne Marine Reserve using a range of methods. Data on the sedimentation rates of organic and inorganic matter were collected at monthly intervals for one year at a number of sites around the Lough, by use of vertical midwater-column sediment traps. Sedimentation of these two fractions were not coupled; inorganic matter sedimentation depended on hydrodynamic and weather factors, while the organic matter sedimentation was more complex, being dependent on biological and chemical processes in the water column. The effects of regular hypoxic episodes on benthic fauna due to a natural seasonal thermocline were studied in the deep Western Trough, using camera-equipped remotely-operated vehicle to follow transects, on a three-monthly basis over one year. In late summer, the area below the thermocline of the Western Trough was devoid of visible fauna. Decapod crustaceans were the first taxon to make use of ameliorating oxygen conditions in autumn, by darting below the thermocline depth, most likely to scavenge. This was indicated by tracks that they left on the surface of the Trough floor. Some species, most noticeably Fries’ goby Lesueurigobius friesii, migrated below the thermocline depth when conditions were normoxic and established semi-permanent burrows. Their population encompassed all size classes, indicating that this habitat was not limited to juveniles of this territorial species. Recolonisation by macrofauna and burrowing megafauna was studied during normoxic conditions, from November 2009 to May 2010. Macrofauna displayed a typical post-disturbance pattern of recolonisation with one species, the polychaete Scalibregma inflatum, occurring at high abundance levels in March 2010. In May, this population had become significantly reduced and a more diverse community was established. The abundance of burrowing infauna comprising decapods crabs and Fries’ gobies, was estimated by identifying and counting their distinctive burrow structures. While above the summer thermocline depth, burrow abundance increased in a linear fashion, below the thermocline depth a slight reduction of burrow abundance occurred in May, when oxygen conditions deteriorated again. The majority of the burrows occurring in May were made by Fries’ gobies, which are thought to encounter low oxygen concentrations in their burrows. Reduction in burrow abundance of burrowing shrimps Calocaris macandreae and Callianassa subterranea (based on descriptions of burrow structures from the literature), from March to May, might be related to their reduced activity in hypoxia, leading to loss of structural burrow maintenance. Spatial and temporal changes to macrofaunal assemblage structures were studied seasonally for one year across 5 sites in the Lough and subject to multivariate statistical analysis. Assemblage structures were significantly correlated with organic matter levels in the sediment, the amounts of organic matter settling out of the water column one month before macrofaunal sampling took place as well as current speed and temperature. This study was the first to investigate patterns and processes in the Lough soft sediment ecology across all 3 basins on a temporal and spatial scale. An investigation into the oceanographic aspects of the development, behaviour and break-down of the summer thermocline of Lough Hyne was performed in collaboration with researchers from other Irish institutions.

Environmental variability and biodiversity of megabenthos on the Hebrides Terrace Seamount (Northeast Atlantic)

We present the first remotely operated vehicle investigation of megabenthic communities (1004-1695 m water depth) on the Hebrides Terrace Seamount (Northeast Atlantic). Conductivity-temperature-depth casts showed rapid light attenuation below the summit and an oceanographic regime on the flanks consistent with an internal tide, and high short-term variability in water temperature, salinity, light attenuation, aragonite and oxygen down to 1500 m deep. Minor changes in species composition (3-14%) were explained by changes in depth, substratum and oceanographic stability, whereas environmental variability explained substantially more variation in species richness (40-56%). Two peaks in species richness occurred, the first at 1300-1400 m where cooler Wyville Thomson Overflow Water (WTOW) mixes with subtropical gyre waters and the second at 1500-1600 m where WTOW mixes with subpolar mode waters. Our results suggest that internal tides, substrate heterogeneity and oceanographic interfaces may enhance biological diversity on this and adjacent seamounts in the Rockall Trough.

Seeking the sun in deep, dark places: mesopelagic sightings of ocean sunfishes (Molidae)

Evidence is presented from publicly available remotely operated vehicle (ROV) footage that suggests deep-water ranging in ocean sunfishes (family Molidae) is more common than typically thought, including a new maximum depth recorded for the southern sunfish Mola ramsayi.

Multisensor Modeling Underwater with Uncertain Information

This thesis develops an approach to the construction of multidimensional stochastic models for intelligent systems exploring an underwater environment. It describes methods for building models by a three- dimensional spatial decomposition of stochastic, multisensor feature vectors. New sensor information is incrementally incorporated into the model by stochastic backprojection. Error and ambiguity are explicitly accounted for by blurring a spatial projection of remote sensor data before incorporation. The stochastic models can be used to derive surface maps or other representations of the environment. The methods are demonstrated on data sets from multibeam bathymetric surveying, towed sidescan bathymetry, towed sidescan acoustic imagery, and high-resolution scanning sonar aboard a remotely operated vehicle.

Um sistema de visão para navegação robusta de uma plataforma robótica semi-autônoma

Large efforts have been maden by the scientific community on tasks involving locomotion of mobile robots. To execute this kind of task, we must develop to the robot the ability of navigation through the environment in a safe way, that is, without collisions with the objects. In order to perform this, it is necessary to implement strategies that makes possible to detect obstacles. In this work, we deal with this problem by proposing a system that is able to collect sensory information and to estimate the possibility for obstacles to occur in the mobile robot path. Stereo cameras positioned in parallel to each other in a structure coupled to the robot are employed as the main sensory device, making possible the generation of a disparity map. Code optimizations and a strategy for data reduction and abstraction are applied to the images, resulting in a substantial gain in the execution time. This makes possible to the high level decision processes to execute obstacle deviation in real time. This system can be employed in situations where the robot is remotely operated, as well as in situations where it depends only on itself to generate trajectories (the autonomous case)

Projeto e construção de um robô móvel AGV/ROV não-holonômico com habilidade para navegação autônoma do tipo wall-following

Esta dissertação de mestrado apresenta o projeto e a construção de um robô móvel terrestre denominado LOGBOT, com tração de movimento do tipo diferencial – com duas rodas motoras e uma roda livre para manter a estabilidade de sua estrutura em relação à superfície. O controle do robô dispõe dos modos de telemetria e autônomo. No modo de controle por telemetria (ROV), a comunicação do robô com a estação de controle é feita por radiofreqüência a uma distância de até um quilometro em ambientes externos, e até cem metros em ambientes internos. No modo de controle autônomo (AGV), o robô tem habilidade para navegar em ambientes internos e desconhecidos usando sempre a parede à sua esquerda como referência para a trajetória de seu movimento. A seqüência de movimentos para execução da trajetória é enviada para a estação de controle que realiza análises de desempenho do robô. Para executar suas tarefas no modo autônomo, a programação do robô conta com um agente inteligente reativo, que detecta características do ambiente (obstáculos, final de paredes, etc.) e decide sobre qual atitude deve ser executada pelo robô, com objetivo de contornar os obstáculos e controlar a velocidade de suas rodas. Os problemas de erro odométrico e suas correções com base no uso de informações sensoriais externas são devidamente tratados. Técnicas de controle hierárquico do robô como um todo e controle em malha fechada da velocidade das rodas do robô são usadas. Os resultados mostraram que o robô móvel LOGBOT é capaz de navegar, com estabilidade e precisão, em ambientes internos no formato de um corredor (wall following).

Extensive Rhodolith Beds Cover the Summits of Southwestern Atlantic Ocean Seamounts

Calcium carbonate production by marine organisms is an essential process in the global budget of CO32-, and coralline reefs are the most important benthic carbonate producers. Crustose coralline algae (CCA) are well recognized as the most important carbonate builders in the tropical Brazilian continental shelf, forming structural reefs and extensive rhodolith beds. However, the distribution of CCA beds, as well as their role in CO32- mineralization in mesophotic communities and isolated carbonate banks, is still poorly known. To characterize the bottom features of several seamount summits in the Southwestern Atlantic (SWA), side-scan sonar records, remotely operated vehicle imagery, and benthic samples with mixed-gas scuba diving were acquired during two recent research cruises (March 2009 and February 2011). The tops of several seamounts within this region are relatively shallow (similar to 60 m), flat, and dominated by rhodolith beds (Vitoria, Almirante Saldanha, Davis, and Jaseur seamounts, as well as the Trindade Island shelf). On the basis of abundance, dimensions, vitality, and growth rates of CCA nodules, a mean CaCO3 production was estimated, ranging from 0.4 to 1.8 kg m(-2) y(-1) with a total production reaching 1.5 x 10(-3) Gt y(-1). Our results indicate that these SWA seamount summits provide extensive areas of shallow reef area and represent 0.3% of the world's carbonate banks. The importance of this habitat has been highly neglected, and immediate management needs must be fulfilled in the short term to ensure long-term persistence of the ecosystem services provided by these offshore carbonate realms.

Solar radiation over and under sea ice and photographic quantification of Ice algal aggregates during the POLARSTERN cruise ARK-XXVII/3 (IceArc) in summer 2012

The ice cover of the Arctic Ocean has been changing dramatically in the last decades and the consequences for the sea-ice associated ecosystem remain difficult to assess. Algal aggregates underneath sea ice have been described sporadically but the frequency and distribution of their occurrence is not well quantified. We used upward looking images obtained by a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) to derive estimates of ice algal aggregate biomass and to investigate their spatial distribution. During the IceArc expedition (ARK-XXVII/3) of RV Polarstern in late summer 2012, different types of algal aggregates were observed floating underneath various ice types in the Central Arctic basins. Our results show that the floe scale distribution of algal aggregates in late summer is very patchy and determined by the topography of the ice underside, with aggregates collecting in dome shaped structures and at the edges of pressure ridges. The buoyancy of the aggregates was also evident from analysis of the aggregate size distribution. Different approaches used to estimate aggregate biomass yield a wide range of results. This highlights that special care must be taken when upscaling observations and comparing results from surveys conducted using different methods or on different spatial scales.