The ROV's manual mode allows for very easy control of the ROV's 3D position.
The LED lights are there to signal the operator about the state of the ROV. For instance, the strips on the sides convey active operating mode.
With the ROV's vision system the ROV can follow the ROV at a fix distance on its own!
The project is part of the course TSRT10 at Linköpings University's department of Electrical Engineering(ISY). Attendants of the course study either Mechanical Engineering or Engineering Physics.
The project began as a M.Sc project in 2016. Later that same year, a continuation of the project was added to the course TSRT10 at LiU. This year's project is the third to be run in the course TSRT10.
The project is a cooperation between Linköpings University and COMBINE.
The long-term goal of the project is to develop a fully autonomous ROV able to perform simpler tasks on its own. Examples of such tasks are to explore an unknown aquatic territory in search of an object or to create a 3D map the unknown area. The ROV is also to be used as a development tool for control systems of remotely operated underwater vehicles.
To contact us send an e-mail to tsrt10rov2018@gmail.com
By using the sonar sensors, pressure sensors and the IMU a complementary filter and a Kalman filter was developed to estimate the ROV's attitude and its position respectively. Apart from position and attitude estimations, a high resolution depth estimator was developed allowing for total control along the gobal z-axis.
The control system consists of a decentralized controller with six PID controllers in each degree of freedom. In order to transform the system into a linear one, feedback linearization was used. The control system has high performance in reference tracking and allows for references to be passed from four different operating modes.
A major development area for this year's project was making use of the ROV's camera and developing a Vision System. The Vision System aids a great deal in performing autonomous functions. One major new function for this year is that ROV can detect and follow an object at a fix distance, specified by the user. It can also performing an automatic sweep in search of an object.
During the project steps towards the final goal of having a fully autonomous ROV were made. For one, a "Go To Point" autonomous function was implemented which has the user specify a position which the ROV then goes to on its own. Another implemented feature is the "Rise To Surface", which has the ROV ascend to the surface in case of lost connection with the workstation. This is an important feature hindering the ROV from potential collisions with the ocean floor.
Tommy Karlsson
Head of Design
Tommy has been responsible for coordinating the design process and making sure that the modules are integratable. Had a central part in developing the Vision System.
Casper Johansson
Head of Hardware
Casper is responsible for hardware updates and maintenance. Focused mainly towards developing the Sensor Fusion.
Kristian Ericsson
Project Manager
As project manager Kristian has made sure the project was on track at all times. Was primarily involved with the development of the Control System.
Martin Drangel
Documentation Responsible
Besides proof reading documents Martin has mainly worked with the Control System.
Mikael Nådin
Head of Information
Mikael has mainly worked with developing the Sensor Fusion but also had an overall creative responsibility over all media.
Philip Öhrn
Head of Software
Philips main focus during the project has been to develop the Vision system. He is also responsible to ensure code standard is up to par.
Victor Petersson
Head of Testing
Victor has been responsible for designing tests as to verify product specifications. Other than that his main focus was towards developing the Control System.