Configuration Synthesis and Grasping Performance Analysis of Multi-Loop Coupling Capture Mechanism for Launch and Recovery of Torpedo-Shaped Autonomous Underwater Vehicle

Research of capture mechanisms with strong capture adaptability and stable grasp is important to solve the problem of launch and recovery of torpedo-shaped autonomous underwater vehicles(AUVs).A multi-loop coupling capture mechanism with strong adaptability and high retraction rate has been proposed for the launch and recovery of torpedo-shaped AUVs with different morphological features.Firstly,the principle of capturing motion retraction is described based on the appearance characteristics of torpedo-shaped AUVs,and the configuration synthesis of the capture mechanism is carried out using the method of constrained chain synthesis.Secondly,the screw theory is employed to analyze the degree of freedom(DoF)of the capture mechanism.Then,the 3D model of the capture mechanism is established,and the kinematics and dynamics simulations are carried out.Combined with the capture orientation requirements of the capture mechanism,the statics and vibration characteristics analyses are carried out.Furthermore,considering the capture process and the underwater working environment,the motion characteristics and hydraulics characteristics of the capture mechanism are analyzed.Finally,a principle prototype is developed and the torpedo-shaped AUVs capture experiment is completed.The work provides technical reserves for the research and development of AUV capture special equipment.

Cooperative Sampling Path Planning of Underwater Glider Fleet with Simultaneous Launch and Recovery

As low-cost and highly autonomous ocean observation platforms,underwater gliders encounter risks during their launch and recovery,especially when coordinating multi-glider deployments.This work focuses on cooperative path planning of an underwater glider fleet with simultaneous launch and recovery to enhance the autonomy of sampling and reduce deployment risks.Specifically,the gliders collaborate to achieve sampling considering the specified routines of interest.The overall paths to be planned are divided into four rectangular parts with the same starting point,and each glider is assigned a local sampling route.A clipped-oriented line-of-sight algorithm is proposed to ensure the coverage of the desired edges.The pitch angle of the glider is selected as the optimizing parameter to coordinate the overall progress considering the susceptibility of gliders to currents and the randomness of paths produced by complex navigational strategies.Therefore,a multi-actuation deep-Q network algorithm is proposed to ensure simultaneous launch and recovery.Simulation results demonstrate the acceptable effectiveness of the proposed method.

Experimental Study on Coupled Motions of Mother Ship Launching and Recovering of Human-Occupied Vehicle in Regular Waves

The launching and recovery process of a human-occupied vehicle(HOV)faces more complex wave effects than other types of submersible operations.However,due to the nonlinearity between the HOV and its mother ship,difficulties occur in theoretically simulating their coupled motion and hydrodynamics.The coupled motion responses and the load under different regular wave conditions are investigated experimentally in this study.The optimized design of the experimental scheme simulated the launching and recovery process of the mother ship and HOV in regular waves.The attitude sensor performed synchronous real-time measurement of the coupled motion between the mother ship and HOV as well as obtained the load data on the coupled motion under different cable lengths.The results show that models in heading waves mainly lead to the vertical motion of the hoisting point.In beam waves,the transverse and vertical motions of the hoisting point occur in a certain frequency of waves.Under the heading and beam wave conditions,the longer the hoisting cable is,the greater the movement amplitude of the submersible is.Moreover,compared with the condition of the beam waves,the hoisting submersible has less influence on the mother ship under the condition of the heading waves.The findings provide theoretical support for the design optimization of the launching and recovery operation.