Design, Development, and Testing of a Compact Underwater ROV for Inspection and Exploration
Article Sidebar
Main Article Content
Abstract
Underwater exploration has long been a high-risk endeavor requiring trained divers and specialized equipment, creating a growing demand for low-cost, safe, and efficient alternatives. This study presents the design and development of a four-degree-of-freedom (4-DOF) underwater Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) aimed at performing basic submerged inspection tasks. The ROV is designed using Fusion 360 software, with finite element analysis (FEA) ensuring structural integrity under underwater pressure. Key performance metrics, including buoyancy, acceleration, velocity, and stability, are evaluated to validate the system's operation. The final deliverable is a durable, lightweight acrylic ROV frame with negative 90% buoyancy, equipped with sensors, cameras, and weatherproof housing for full underwater functionality. An Arduino Uno microcontroller manages the control system, enabling real-time integration of sensors and camera feeds. This project offers a scalable, low-cost solution for small-scale underwater applications, providing a foundation for future enhancements in maneuverability and data acquisition.
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Journal of Studies in Science and Engineering is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0 (CC BY-4.0).
References
A. F. Molland, The maritime engineering reference book: a guide to ship design, construction and operation. Elsevier, 2011.
J. Giertsen, E. Sandstad, I. Morild, G. Bang, A. Bjersand, and S. Eidsvik, "An explosive decompression accident," The American Journal of Forensic Medicine and Pathology, vol. 9, no. 2, pp. 94-101, 1988, doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/00000433-198806000-00002.
P. Esmaeili, M. Rafei, M. Salari, and D. Balsalobre-Lorente, "From oil surges to renewable shifts: Unveiling the dynamic impact of supply and demand shocks in global crude oil market on US clean energy trends," Energy Policy, vol. 192, p. 114252, 2024, doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.enpol.2024.114252.
M. Aras, S. Abdullah, F. Azis, M. Zambri, and M. Basar, "Auto depth control for underwater remotely operated vehicles using a flexible ballast tank system," Journal of Telecommunication, Electronic and Computer Engineering (JTEC), vol. 7, no. 1, pp. 57-64, 2015.
O. A. Aguirre-Castro et al., "Design and Construction of an ROV for Underwater Exploration," Sensors, vol. 19, no. 24, p. 5387, 2019, doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/s19245387.
J. Li, W. Li, Q. Liu, B. Luo, and W. Cui, "Current status and technical challenges in the development of biomimetic robotic fish-type submersible," Ocean-Land-Atmosphere Research, vol. 3, p. 0036, 2024, doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.34133/olar.0036.
T. Ura, "Development timeline of the autonomous underwater vehicle in Japan," Journal of Robotics and Mechatronics, vol. 32, no. 4, pp. 713-721, 2020, doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.20965/jrm.2020.p0713.
M. Aliff, N. Raihan, I. Yusof, and N. Samsiah, "Development of remote operated vehicle (ROV) control system using Twincat at main control pod (MCP)," Int. J. Innovative Technol. Exploring Eng, vol. 8, p. 12, 2019, doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.35940/ijitee.L4019.1081219.
R. D. Christ and R. L. Wernli Sr, The ROV manual: a user guide for remotely operated vehicles. Butterworth-Heinemann, 2013.
A. Konoplin, N. Konoplin, and A. Yurmanov, "Development and field testing of a smart support system for ROV operators," Journal of Marine Science and Engineering, vol. 10, no. 10, p. 1439, 2022, doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/jmse10101439.
K. R. Deepika and N. J. Kumar, "Design optimisation of a pressure hull for dynamic loading," Int. J. Eng. Sci. Innov. Technol, vol. 2, pp. 562-586, 2013.
A. Meschini, A. Ridolfi, J. Gelli, M. Pagliai, and A. Rindi, "Pressure hull design methods for unmanned underwater vehicles," Journal of Marine Science and Engineering, vol. 7, no. 11, p. 382, 2019, doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/jmse7110382.
K. Breddermann, P. Drescher, C. Polzin, H. Seitz, and M. Paschen, "Printed pressure housings for underwater applications," Ocean Engineering, vol. 113, pp. 57-63, 2016, doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.oceaneng.2015.12.033.
A. Jebelli, C. Yagoub, and S. Dhillon, "Design and implementation of an autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) with PTFE," Adv. Robot. Autom, vol. 7, p. 185, 2018.
R. Capocci, G. Dooly, E. Omerdić, J. Coleman, T. Newe, and D. Toal, "Inspection-class remotely operated vehicles—A review," Journal of Marine Science and Engineering, vol. 5, no. 1, p. 13, 2017, doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/jmse5010013.
D. Naylor and S. S. Tsai, "Archimedes’ principle with surface tension effects in undergraduate fluid mechanics," International Journal of Mechanical Engineering Education, vol. 50, no. 3, pp. 749-763, 2022, doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/03064190211055431.
D. Ting, Thermofluids: from nature to engineering. Academic Press, 2022.
M. U. Mohd Ubaidillah bin Mohd Kamal, "Design of A Ballast Tank For A Small Underwater Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV)," 2008.
M. M. B. Mohamad, "Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) Prototype," Final Year Project, Universiti Teknologi Petronas, Malaysia, 2012.
W. Wang, S. Pang, T. Wu, and B. Han, "ArduinoSub—a low-cost ROV kit for ocean engineering education," in OCEANS 2019 MTS/IEEE SEATTLE, 2019: IEEE, pp. 1-6, doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.23919/OCEANS40490.2019.8962404.
T. Nagakita and T. Sakaue, "Development of ROV for underground power transmission equipment inspection in submerged manhole," presented at the Proc. IFAC World Congr, Düsseldorf, Germany, 2020.
A. Tanveer and S. M. Ahmad, "Design of a Low-Cost Prototype Underwater Vehicle," arXiv preprint arXiv:2303.13063, 2023.
P. Tarwadi, Y. Shiraki, O. Ganoni, S. Wei, H. S. Ahn, and B. MacDonald, "Design and development of a robotic vehicle for shallow-water marine inspections," Proceedings Australasian Conference on Robotics and Automation, Queensland, Australia, pp. 1-8, 2020.
R. D. Christ and R. L. Wernli Sr, The ROV manual: a user guide for observation class remotely operated vehicles. Elsevier, 2011.
C. Viel, "Self-management of the umbilical of a ROV for underwater exploration," Ocean Engineering, vol. 248, p. 110695, 2022, doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.oceaneng.2022.110695.
Y. Zhang, Q. Zhang, A. Zhang, Y. Sun, and Z. He, "Development and experiments of a novel deep-sea resident ROV," in 2021 6th International Conference on Control and Robotics Engineering (ICCRE), 2021: IEEE, pp. 129-134, doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1109/ICCRE51898.2021.9435653.
P. Trslić, "Autonomous docking for work class ROVs," University of Limerick, 2020.
J. D. Hernández et al., "Autonomous underwater navigation and optical mapping in unknown natural environments," Sensors, vol. 16, no. 8, p. 1174, 2016, doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/s16081174.
T. Kato, Y. Kawamura, J. Tahara, S. Baba, and Y. Sanada, "Development of side thruster system for ASV," in ISOPE International Ocean and Polar Engineering Conference, 2020: ISOPE, pp. ISOPE-I-20-2128.
J. Lam, A. Chen, A. Bennett, and M. Triantafyllou, "Propeller Characterization Testing of a Blue Robotics T200 Thruster," in OCEANS 2023-Limerick, 2023: IEEE, pp. 1-8, doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1109/OCEANSLimerick52467.2023.10244513.
M. Fernandes, S. R. Sahoo, and M. Kothari, "An Open Source, Low Cost, 3D Printed Thruster For Autonomous Underwater and Surface Vehicles," in 2022 IEEE/OES Autonomous Underwater Vehicles Symposium (AUV), 2022: IEEE, pp. 1-6, doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1109/AUV53081.2022.9965889.