Computer screensaver underwater world_In the giant man-made lake in Houston, NASA “raised” an underwater Transformer

Big Data Digest

Source ：IEEE

Compilation ： Chu Yang, Xing Chang, Li Lei

surrounded by a piece of blue & # xff0c; not far away & # xff0c; two astronauts are practicing spacewalk & # xff0c; in this quiet space & # xff0c; only the sound of breathing and occasionally from the command center order to break the silence.

Don’t get me wrong，This is not space，it’s in a huge pool of water in Houston，NASA（NASA）uses it Train astronauts to adapt to weightlessness.

Floating in the water with the astronauts is a giant orange robot – Aquanaut.

It shuttles smoothly through the water like a micro-submarine. At the beginning & # xff0c; it is no different from other unmanned underwater vehicles & # xff0c; rely on sensors to collect data & # xff0c; advance with the help of thrusters. Then ， The painting style changes ， Aquanaut is like a Transformer ， the back bulges ， two arms are exposed ， twisting the head full of sensors &#xff0c ;After a while，Transformation completed，Aquanaut, the submarine transformer, will be officially launched！

The universe

Aquanqut is very special compared to other unmanned underwater vehicles. When performing long-distance cruising tasks，it can be an agile torpedo submarine，when performing complex underwater operations，it can transform into a half-humanoid robot. The transformation process is as follows：

1. Aquanaut sails to the work site in a streamlined submarine form；2. After reaching the work site，its back hull can be raised， xff0c;Show two arms and wedge-shaped head ；3. The head carrying the stereo camera, 3D sensor and sonar system rotates into place ；4. Expands two large arms ， Sensor and claw clamp.

Aquanaut has undergone numerous design and revisions after its completion ， In order to be able to change the shape substantially，Aquanaut is equipped with four custom-made linear actuators， Parts are separated. Additional custom motors are housed in waterproof housings， to drive the arms and head. In terms of power, the Aquanaut uses lithium-ion batteries similar to those used in electric vehicles. Currently ， a full transformation only takes 30 seconds. However，before going into the sea，Aquanaut needs to prove his strength under more severe conditions，so，it was sent to NASA’s large pool.

Maximum depth 12 meters ，With 23.5 million liters of water, NASA Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory （NBL）， is so big that it can almost accommodate the entire International Space Station. Astronauts practice spacewalks in the NBL – the closest thing to weightlessness on Earth. From one morning in late March the NBL zoned the north end of the pool to Aquanaut to test its performance.

Photo: HMI takes Aquanaut to the world’s largest indoor pool，to test it under controlled conditions. NASA’s Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory & # xff0c; used to help astronauts adapt to zero-gravity environments & # xff0c; it is so large that it can almost accommodate the entire International Space Station.

Use of Underwater Transformers ：Aquanaut

Houston Mechatronics Inc （HMI）is a start-up ） xff0c;Engineers here want to revolutionize the status quo of underwater vehicles ，and Aquanaut will be a milestone. Traditional UUVs are roughly divided into two types ： torpedo-type underwater vehicles that can perform long-range detection tasks ； unmanned remote-controlled underwater vehicles that can realize underwater operations， Auxiliary supervision or control by other ships is usually required. HMI creatively combines the two into one ，Although there are often jokes about building a Transformer，the engineers at HMI have great faith in the Aquanaut.

Video: Evan Ackerman/IEEE Spechttps://www. zhihu.com/video/1145740507140575232

Most offshore oil and gas development companies need to build an offshore platform，People start underwater drilling operations from the surface of this platform. Although what we see is only the part of the sea platform，but a large number of high-end equipment actually exists under the sea.

In order to perform routine drilling head maintenance，or to adjust the delivery rate of natural gas，it is necessary to turn the drilling valve at 300 meters underwater，this cannot be done by divers The ， only way is underwater robots.

Drilling wellheads on the seabed use special manhole covers， to control the delivery of natural gas to the sea surface. The entire structure also contains pipes, valves, gas manifolds and gauges.�Adept，yet very popular with the offshore oil and gas industry. He said & # xff1a; “Oil companies are patiently waiting for ROV technology to mature & # xff0c; and have given a lot of help & # xff0c; so & # xff0c; it stands to reason that these more autonomous underwater vehicles will also We are equally welcome.”

Photography：Evan Ackerman. Picture ：（on top）HMI engineers are checking the head of Aquanaut（The main sensors are installed on the head），to prepare for launching. （under）traditional unmanned underwater vehicles require technicians to control its sensing and computing systems，to complete automatic operations，it can perform tasks under the supervision of technicians without direct human control.

The future is far away

Nic Radford, co-founder and chief technology officer of HMI， has worked for NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston for 14 years ， Focus on cutting-edge robot projects. He said & # xff1a; “Flying into space is harder than diving into the bottom of the sea & # xff0c; but space is quiet & # xff0c; the bottom of the sea is extremely turbulent. Is the work of an undersea robot 10 or 50 times more difficult than a space robot & # xff0c;It’s really hard to say.”

Matthew A. Franchek, professor of mechanical engineering at the University of Houston and director of the International Subsea Engineering Institute, said ，Aquanaut’s low-bandwidth connection and intermittent operator involvement Decisions，may carry a greater risk of error. He said & # xff1a; “Uncertainty is there & # xff0c; I worry about failures during operation & # xff0c; which could result in financial loss and environmental damage. Although the technology is exciting ，They still need to prove it works.”

Related report ：https://spectrum.ieee.org/robotics/humanoids/meet-aquanaut-the-underwater-transformer