Title | I-AUV Docking and Panel Intervention at Sea |
Publication Type | Journal Article |
Year of Publication | 2016 |
Authors | Palomeras, N, Peñalver, A, Massot-Campos, M, Negre, PLluís, Fernández, JJ, Ridao, P, Sanz, PJ, Oliver, G |
Journal | Sensors |
Volume | 16 |
Issue | 10 |
Date Published | 12 October 2016 |
Type of Article | Open Access |
Keywords | autonomous underwater vehicles, field robotics, manipulation, Underwater Intervention |
Abstract | The use of commercially available autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) has increased during the last fifteen years. While they are mainly used for routine survey missions, there is a set of applications that nowadays can be only addressed by manned submersibles or work-class remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) equipped with teleoperated arms: the intervention applications. To allow these heavy vehicles controlled by human operators to perform intervention tasks, underwater structures like observatory facilities, subsea panels or oil-well Christmas trees have been adapted, making them more robust and easier to operate. The TRITON Spanish founded project proposes the use of a light-weight intervention AUV (I-AUV) to carry out intervention applications simplifying the adaptation of these underwater structures and drastically reducing the operational cost. To prove this concept, the Girona 500 I-AUV is used to autonomously dock into an adapted subsea panel and once docked perform an intervention composed of turning a valve and plugging in/unplugging a connector. The techniques used for the autonomous docking and manipulation as well as the design of an adapted subsea panel with a funnel-based docking system are presented in this article together with the results achieved in a water tank and at sea. |
URL | http://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/16/10/1673/html |
DOI | 10.3390/s16101673 |
I-AUV Docking and Panel Intervention at Sea
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