In order to solve the problem of improper thrust distribution of each thruster of underwater vehicle, the PSO optimization algorithm is used to solve the problem of thrust distribution. According to the spatial layout of the thruster, the algorithm model of the underwater vehicle propulsion system is established. The thrust input is carried out under the broken line search trajectory, and the simulation verifies the thrust allocation results of the PSO algorithm and the traditional pseudo-inverse method. The simulation results show that compared with the traditional algorithm. First of all, the PSO algorithm can set the physical threshold for each thruster to prevent the thruster from having too much thrust. Secondly, it can ensure that the thruster can turn with a reasonable torque to prevent the robot from drifting due to the large thrust gap. This paper provides a theoretical reference for thrust distribution of underwater salvage robot, and has practical engineering significance.

This study analyzed the wake characteristics of the rim-driven propeller (RDP) used in an underwater robot. For underwater robots to perform specific missions, not only propulsion characteristics but also wake characteristics must be considered. In this study, a blade was designed based on NAC 0012 with a symmetrical cross-section. The RDP was hubless with three or four blades. The influence of both the free water surface and the bottom was considered, and the wake was measured using a particle image velocimetry in the advance ratio of 0.2 to 1. Model 1 showed symmetrical wakes in the entire advance ratio section. Model 2 showed asymmetric wakes due to the influence of the free water surface and the bottom at low advance ratio.

This paper presents a control and operation system for a remotely operated vehicle (ROV). The ROV used in the study was equipped with a manipulator and is being developed for underwater exploration and autonomous underwater working. Precision position and attitude control ability is essential for underwater operation using a manipulator. For propulsion, the ROV is equipped with eight thrusters, the number of those are more than six degrees-of-freedom. Four of them are in charge of surge, sway, and yaw motion, and the other four are responsible for heave, roll, and pitch motion. Therefore, it is more efficient to integrate the management of the thrusters rather than control them individually. In this paper, a thrust allocation method for thruster management is presented, and the design of a feedback controller using sensor data is described. The software for the ROV operation consists of a robot operating system that can efficiently process data between multiple hardware platforms. Through experimental analysis, the validity of the control system performance was verified.

This paper describes a method for tracking attitude and position of underwater robots. Underwater work with underwater robots is subject to differences in work efficiency depending on the skill of the operator and the utilization of additional sensors. Therefore, this study developed an underwater robot that can operate autonomously and maintain a certain attitude when working underwater to reduce difference of work efficiency. The developed underwater robot uses 8 thrusters to control 6 degrees of freedom motion, IMU (Inertial Measurement Unit), DVL (Doppler Velocity Log) and PS (Pressure Sensor) to measure attitude and position. In addition, the thruster allocation algorithm was designed to follow the control desired value using 8 thrusters, and the motion control experiments were performed in the engineering water basin using the thruster allocation method.

수중에서 로봇으로 사석 고르기 작업을 실시할 경우 로봇 주위의 지형 정보를 실시간으로 제공해야 원격조종이 가능하다. 현 위치로 부터 주변지형의 높낮이를 보여줘야 운전자가 작업 계획을 수립하고, 전복과 같은 사고도 예방할 수 있다. 지금까지 지형인식은 멀티 빔 소나에 의해 이뤄졌는데 이는 작업 전후의 품질을 평가하는 용도만 사용되었지 원격조종에서 필요한 실시간 정보로는 사용될 수 없었다. 본 연구는 수중 사석 고르기 작업을 위한 실시간 지형인식 방법을 개발한다. 버킷이 지면을 누를 때 전달되는 힘을 측정해 접촉여부를 판단하고, 실린더의 길이를 읽어 접촉위치를 계산한다. 버킷의 위치제어를 위해 가변 뱅뱅제어 알고리즘을 적용하고 숙련된 굴삭기 운전자의 작업패턴을 프로 그램화해 지형인식, 긁기, 밀기, 전진 등의 작업을 자동으로 수행하도록 한다. 개발된 방법은 로봇 몸체로부터 버킷의 거리에 따라 3차원 격자 지형을 상대적으로 보여줌으로써 작업자가 쉽게 지형을 인식하고 지형에 따라 작업계획을 세우도록 한다.

This study focuses on autonomous exploration based on map expansion for an underwater robot equipped with acoustic sonars. Map expansion is applicable to large-area mapping, but it may affect localization accuracy. Thus, as the key contribution of this paper, we propose a method for underwater autonomous exploration wherein the robot determines the trade-off between map expansion ratio and position accuracy, selects which of the two has higher priority, and then moves to a mission step. An occupancy grid map is synthesized by utilizing the measurements of an acoustic range sonar that determines the probability of occupancy. This information is then used to determine a path to the frontier, which becomes the new search point. During area searching and map building, the robot revisits artificial landmarks to improve its position accuracy as based on imaging sonar-based recognition and EKF-SLAM if the position accuracy is above the predetermined threshold. Additionally, real-time experiments were conducted by using an underwater robot, yShark, to validate the proposed method, and the analysis of the results is discussed herein.

This paper describes a study on posture control of the multi-legged biomimetic underwater robot (CALEB10). Because the underwater environment has a feature that all degrees of freedom are coupled to each other, we designed the posture control algorithm by separating each degree of freedom. Not only should the research on posture control of underwater robots be a precedent study for position control, but it is also necessary to compensate disturbance in each direction. In the research on the yaw directional posture control, we made the drag force generated by the stroke of the left leg and the right leg occur asymmetrically, in order that a rotational moment is generated along the yaw direction. In the composite swimming controller in which the controllers in each direction are combined, we designed the algorithm to determine the control weights in each direction according to the error angle along the yaw direction. The performance of the proposed posture control method is verified by a dynamical simulator and underwater experiments.

The CALEB10 is a multi-legged biomimetic underwater robot. In the last research, we developed a swimming pattern named ESPG (Extended Swimming Pattern Generator) by observing diving beetle’s swimming actions and experimented with a positive buoyancy state in which CALEB10 floats on the water. In this paper, however, we have experimented with CALEB10 in a neutral buoyancy state where it is completely immersed in water for pitch motion control experiment. And we found that CALEB10 was unstably swimming in the pitch direction in the neutral buoyancy state and analyzed that the reason was due to the weight proportion of the legs. In this paper, we propose a pitch motion control method to mimic the pitch motion of diving beetles and to solve the problem of CALEB10 unstably swimming in the pitch direction. To control the pitch motion, we use the method of controlling additional joints while swimming with the ESPG. The method of obtaining propulsive force by the motion of the leg has a problem of giving propulsive force in the reverse direction when swimming in the surge direction, but this new control method has an advantage that a propulsive moment generated by a swimming action only on a target pitch value. To demonstrate validity this new control method, we designed a dynamics-based simulator environment. And the control performance to the target pitch value was verified through simulation and underwater experiments.

For articulated swimming robots, there have been no researches about controlling the motion or trajectory following. A control method for articulated swimming robot is suggested by extending a previous algorithm, ESPG (Extended Swimming Pattern Generator). The control method focuses on the situation that continuous pre-determined swimming pattern is applied for long range travelling. In previous studies, there has not been a way to control the propulsive force when a swimming pattern created by ESPG was in progress. Hence, no control could be made unless the swimming pattern was completed even though an error occurred while the swimming pattern was in progress. In order to solve this problem, this study analyzes swimming patterns and suggests a method to control the propulsive force even while the swimming pattern was in progress. The angular velocity of each link is influenced and this eventually modifies the propulsive force. However, The angular velocity is changed, a number of problems can occur. In order to resolve this issue, phase compensation method and synchronization method were suggested. A simple controller was designed to confirm whether the suggested methods are able to control and a simulation has affirmed it. Moreover, it was applied to CALEB 10 (a biomimetic underwater articulated robot) and the result was verified.

열악한 작업환경 때문에 수중항만공사를 기계화하려는 많은 노력들이 시도되고 있다. 본 논문은 수중항만공사 중 사석 고르기 작업을 수행하는 수중건설로봇에 대해 기술한다. 로봇의 블레이드는 울퉁불퉁한 지형에서도 사석 마운드를 기준면에 대해 평편하게 고르고, 다목적 암은 사석을 파고, 채울 수 있게 설계되었다. 본 연구는 로봇에 설치된 위치 및 방위 센서와 동기를 이루면서 주행과 스윙운동이 포함된 다목 적암과 블레이드의 기구학을 해석한다. 기준수심센서에 부여된 월드좌표에 대해서 블레이드와 다목적암의 위치와 방위를 나타내고, 기준면과 나란한 고르기 작업을 위한 형상을 찾는다. 고르기 작업을 위한 유압제어시스템을 개발하며, 로봇에 의한 육상 및 수중 사석 고르기 작업을 실시해 실험결과를 보인다. 로봇의 작업속도는 잠수부보다 8배 정도 빠르며 작업품질도 우수한 것으로 평가된다. 잠수부가 작업할 수 없는 대 수심에서는 효율성이 더 좋을 것으로 기대된다.

This paper proposes an underwater localization algorithm using probabilistic object recognition. It is organized as follows; 1) recognizing artificial objects using imaging sonar, and 2) localizing the recognized objects and the vehicle using EKF(Extended Kalman Filter) based SLAM. For this purpose, we develop artificial landmarks to be recognized even under the unstable sonar images induced by noise. Moreover, a probabilistic recognition framework is proposed. In this way, the distance and bearing of the recognized artificial landmarks are acquired to perform the localization of the underwater vehicle. Using the recognized objects, EKF-based SLAM is carried out and results in a path of the underwater vehicle and the location of landmarks. The proposed localization algorithm is verified by experiments in a basin.

This paper describes the design concept of a bio-inspired legged underwater and estimating its performance by implementing simulations. Especially the leg structure of an underwater organism, diving beetles, is fully adopted to our designing to employ its efficiency for swimming. To make it possible for the robot to both walk and swim, the transformable kinematic model according to applications of the leg is proposed. To aid in the robot development and estimate swimming performance of the robot in advance, an underwater simulator has been constructed and an approximated model based on the developing robot was set up in the simulation. Furthermore, previous work that we have done, the swimming locomotion produced by a swimming patten generator based on the control parameters, is briefly mentioned in the paper and adopted to the simulation for extensive studies such as path planning and control techniques. Through the results, we established the strategy of leg joints which make the robot swim in the three dimensional space to reach effective controls.

This paper verifies the performance of Extended Kalman Filter(EKF) and MCL(Monte Carlo Localization) approach to localization of an underwater vehicle through experiments. Especially, the experiments use acoustic range sensor whose measurement accuracy and uncertainty is not yet proved. Along with localization, the experiment also discloses the uncertainty features of the range measurement such as bias and variance. The proposed localization method rejects outlier range data and the experiment shows that outlier rejection improves localization performance. It is as expected that the proposed method doesn’t yield as precise location as those methods which use high priced DVL(Doppler Velocity Log), IMU(Inertial Measurement Unit), and high accuracy range sensors. However, it is noticeable that the proposed method can achieve the accuracy which is affordable for correction of accumulated dead reckoning error, even though it uses only range data of low reliability and accuracy.

수중 방파제 피복작업은 사석의 유실을 방지하기 위해 방파제 겉면에 2-3ton의 돌을 쌓는 작업으로 현재 잠수부에 의해 수작업으로 시공을 하고 있다. 수중에서의 사야문제와 작업의 특성상 잠수부의 육감에 의해 공사가 시행되며 작업 과정에서 산업재해가 빈번히 발생한다. 이러한 문제점을 해결하기 위해 본 논문에서는 수중 방파제 피복작업을 위한 수중항만공사 로봇을 개발하였다. 로봇의 유압 실린더 제어를 위해 위치 센서가 필요한데 기존 센서는 구동축에 부착되어 방수가 어렵고 건설현장에서 사용하기에는 내구성이 좋지 못하다. 하지만 압력센서는 유압라인상의 임의의 위치에 부착이 가능하므로 방수박스 내부에 설치할 수 있어 방수가 용이하고 내구성을 높일 수 있다. 따라서 본 논문에서는 압력센서를 이용하여 수중항만공사 로봇의 유압 실린더 변위를 간접적으로 측정하는 관측기를 설명한다.

Recently, development of underwater robot has actively been in progress in the world as ROV(Remotely Operator Vehicle) and AUV(Autonomous Unmmanded Vehicle) style. But KIOST(Korea Institute of Ocean Science and Technology), beginning in 2010, launched the R&D project to develop the robot, dubbed CRABSTER(Crab + (Lob)ster) in a bid to enhance the safety and efficiency of resource exploration. CRABSTER has been designed to be able to walk and swim with its own legs without screws. Among many research subjects regarding CRABSTER, optimal swimming patterns are handled in this paper. In previous studies, drag forces during one period with different values for angle of each joint were derived. However kinematics of real-robot and fluid-dynamics are not considered. We conducted simulations with an optimization algorithm for swimming by considering simplified fluid dynamics in this paper. Drag-coefficients applied to the simulation were approximated values calculated by CFD(Computational Fluid Dynamics : Tecplot 360, ANSYS). In addition, optimized swimming patterns were applied to a real robot. The experiments with the real robot were conducted in circumstances in the water. As a result, when the experiments were carried out in the water, a regular pattern of drag force output came out depending on the movement of the robot. We confirmed the fact that the drag forces from the simulation and the experiment has a high similarity.

This paper proposes particle filter(PF) method using acoustic signal for localization of an underwater robot. The method uses time of arrival(TOA) or time difference of arrival(TDOA) of acoustic signals from beacons whose locations are known. An experiment in towing tank uses TOA information. Simulation uses TDOA information and it reveals dependency of the localization performance on the uncertainty of robot motion and senor data. Also, comparison of the PF method with the least squares method of spherical interpolation(SI) and spherical intersection(SX) is provided. Since PF uses TOA or TDOA which comes from measurement of external information as well as internal motion information, its estimation is more accurate and robust to the sensor and motion uncertainty than the least squares methods.

본 연구에서는 수중청소로봇의 추종 성능과 통합 제어시스템 성능을 가시적으로 예측할 수 있는 3차원 시뮬레이터를 개발하였다. 수중청소로봇의 동역학적 해석을 기반으로, 시뮬레이터에는 실제 개발 중인 3차원형상의 수중청소로봇을 적용하고 로봇의 위치와 속도 등을 나타내는 창을 표시하였다. 또한 조이스틱을 사용하는 입력 및 제어 장치를 직접 제작하여 시리얼 통신을 통하여 시뮬레이터의 입력 및 제어에 사용하였다. 그리고 통합 항법 제어시스템을 설계하고, PI 기반의 퍼지 제어기를 포함하는 way-point tracking 시뮬레이션을 통하여 성능을 검증하였다.

병렬기구를 이용하여 항만공사를 위한 수중로봇을 개발하였다. 수중으로 큰 피복석을 옮기기 위해 수중로봇은 크레인에 의해 권양된다. 수중로봇의 요오와 피치운동은 유압 실린더에 의해 제어되지만 롤 운동은 제어되지 않는다. 롤 운동을 위해 로봇 양쪽에 프로펠러가 장착되어 제어된다. 본 논문은 수중로봇의 롤 운동제어에 관한 것이다. 롤 운동 각도를 측정하기 위해 자이로 센서가 사용되었다. 로봇의 롤 운동을 2차 비선형 시스템으로 나타내고 반복 리스트 스퀘어 방법과 적응인식 방법으로 동적 모델을 찾았다. 동적 모델로 외란을 보상하기 위한 제어입력을 계산하고 PD 제어, 반복 리스트 스퀘어 모델 베이스 제어, 적응 모델 베이스 제어를 롤 운동제어에 적용했다. 수중로봇의 시스템을 설명하고 제안한 제어기의 시뮬레이션과 실험결과를 보인다.

Generally, underwater vehicle type of propeller shows low efficiency about 50% - 55%. However, the efficiency of swimming mechanism of a fish is 60% -70%, more efficient about 20% than screw propellers. Recently, research of underwater vehicle type of fish increase due to its good efficiency and is regarded as a typical bio-mimical robot. In this research, a new algorithm and mechanism that show low energy consumption imitating swimming mechanism of fish proposed increasing speed and running time in field trial.