'Robotic Mermaid' for Deep Sea Exploration

Stanford's OceanOne, a robot for deep sea exploration, is more suitable for this job than all the previous remotely operated vehicles, as it does not damage the surroundings.  

Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs), have been used to conduct undersea tasks, deemed unsafe for humans, for many years.

But while they have been very useful at tackling projects like oil rig repairs, the vehicles lack the finesse and dexterity required to handle fragile missions like monitoring coral reefs.

Their traditional boxy shape also makes it difficult for the robots to penetrate small areas without damaging the surrounding flora. Now thanks to Stanford University's mermaid robot, OceanOne, these shortcomings may be a thing of the past.

The idea of the humanoid robot was conceptualized three years ago, by researchers at the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) in Saudi Arabia.

They believed that such a robot would be ideal to help monitor coral reefs in the Red Sea. To bring their vision to life, Associate Professor Khaled Salama turned to colleagues atCalifornia’s Stanford University for help. 

Professor Oussama Khatib, the Director of Stanford’s Robotics Lab, and his team of undergraduate and graduate students were intrigued by the idea of building an underwater robot and instantly agreed.

While it took a few years, the first prototype of OceanOne, which was released in April 2016, is everything Salama and his team had hoped for, and more.

Measuring about 5-feet from head to “tail,” the robot’s stereoscopic “eyes” allow the pilot to view deep into the ocean without entering the water.

Its “fins” provide ample storage space for batteries, computers, and the eight multi-directional thrusters that help keep the robot stable in turbulent waters.

Also, unlike traditional ROV’s, OceanOne’s electronics are waterproofed with oil rather than being encased inside a rigid case. This simple design improvement prevents the electronics from buckling under the water pressure and enables the robot mermaid to reach depths of up to 2,000 meters without collapsing.

Smart algorithms enable the mermaid robot to avoid collisions and, with some help from the pilot, even use its hands to “swim” when stuck in a tight spot. If a crash is unavoidable, the humanoid robot can soften the impact by stretching out its arm.

Since OceanOne is able to communicate with human divers through hand-gestures, it also makes a useful diving companion.

Sensors affixed to the robot’s arms and wrists enable the pilot to “touch” undersea objects and determine their weight and texture.

Read more: Dogo News

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Taxonomy

• Environment
• Marine
• Electronics
• Research & Environment
• Marine Technologies
• Monitoring Technology