Sponsor: National Science Foundation (CISE/IIS Division)
Collaborator: Prof. Elena Litchman (Co-PI, Kellogg Biological Station and Department of Zoology)
The goal of the AquaSWARM project is to design and develop small, energy-efficient, autonomous underwater robots as sensor-rich platforms for dynamic, long-duration monitoring of aquatic environments. A novel concept of gliding robotic fish is investigated, which merges the energy-efficient design of underwater glider with the high maneuverability of robotic fish. Gliding motion, enabled by pitch and buoyancy control, is exploited to realize dive/ascent and large-distance horizontal travel. Soft actuation materials-based flexible tail fins are used to achieve maneuvers with high hydrodynamic efficiency. The research is focused on understanding gliding design for small robotic fish, and addressing the energy efficiency issue from a systems perspective. Schools of such autonomous robots are deployed in lakes at the Michigan State University Kellogg Biological Station to detect harmful algal blooms (HABs) and validate models for HAB dynamics.