Towards low cost, deep water AUV optical mapping
Eduardo Iscar · Corina Barbalata · Nicholas Goumas · M. Johnson-Roberson
TL;DR
An open source AUV under 1 m long and 20 kg, rated to 6000 m, is designed for deep-sea optical mapping at under $30,000 in materials.
BRIEF
Most of the ocean below 1000 m remains unexplored, partly because autonomous underwater vehicles that can reach those depths are very expensive. This work describes the design of an open source, low cost AUV built for optical mapping of the deep sea. The vehicle is under 1 m long, weighs about 20 kg, and is rated to 6000 m. It uses commercial off-the-shelf parts and can be assembled without complex tools. Materials cost less than $30,000, and design files are shared openly to widen access for researchers and engineers.
Abstract
The high cost associated with autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) capable of operating beyond the mesopelagic ocean zone has prevented the extensive study of the deep ocean. Consequently, little is known about these regions deeper than 1000 m. However, science drivers like climate change, commercial applications like deep sea fisheries and underwater mining are pushing the need to know more about such areas. In this paper we present the development and design of an open source, low cost, autonomous underwater vehicle for optical mapping of the deep sea. With a length of under 1 m and a weight of approximately 20 kg it can operate in depths of up to 6000 m. The AUV has been designed making use of commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) parts and it is intended to be easily assembled without the need of complex tools. The vehicle has a total materials cost of under $$30; 000$ and we are distributing open source design files. We believe such a platform has the ability to increase deep ocean access to a broader community of researchers and engineers by lessing cost constraints.