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ArduAquatic / APM:Aquatic

Posted by Chuck Durham on July 2, 2013 at 8:00pm

Ziphius

 

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So I have been obsessed with robotics for quite some time and up until this year it was all based on walking - Humaniod,  quad & hex walker robots.  I have put together kits, pulled together parts from Lynxmotion - I have stuff all over, I am constantly tearing apart updating as new controller boards, sensors and the like come out.  I even worked on a very slick robot from Japan like 5 years ago - Speecys SPC-101C which unfortunately never made it into production - you can check my Chuck Durham Youtube Channel for some of my robot videos.  I was all about servo control and interfaces via Bluetooth, ZigBee and Wifi

Last year I had the AR Drone 1.0 and I got the Minds-i Kit and started learning more about ESC, R/C transmitters/Receivers - I owe most of this knowledge to this site.  I have followed Arducopter for a while but never had the nerve to try.  I got the AR Drone 2.0 this year and found myself wanting.  So I have dug into the RC world like a mad man, I want to try everything so I have been buying up all kinds of things to try.  Now I think most of you will find when you start a project, it's good to have a few to do, while you wait for parts to come back in stock.  So in the quest to build the Arducopter (APM:Rover), I have stepped into the ArduRover (APM:Rover) figuring APM 2.5+, Mission Planning and Telemetry would be smart to start on the ground, the minds-i is also not a super fast platform with the single motor option I have setup, so I can out run the rover.

So today, I am waiting for parts,  I got 3D Robotics order for the Telemetry to try on the Rover.  I am waiting for a replacement motor from 3D Robotics and some parts coming from China from Hobby King.  So we have air, land and (wait we are missing something) - Sea.  

 

Found a water based Drone - Kickstarter:  Ziphius: The Aquatic Drone.  They have a decent way to go, I am going to keep my eye on it and become a backer to get one of these.  I read and earlier article and there was mention of $25K to fund, but it is actually $125K, they are at $38K.  Anyway this may be something to rally the community around for a possible hackable base for ArduAquatic.

 

There is also another more open project out there for a submersible: OpenROV

 

 

What could be the potential with this community and the APM 2.5+ on something like these.  How will the GPS work underwater, thinking of other type of sensors to integrate, etc

Tags: aquatic, drone, openrov, uav, ziphius
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Comments

  • Martin Evans July 4, 2013 at 1:24pm

    Sounds interesting. I've got an IMU but not a GPS unit, any you would recommend

  • Admin
    Thomas J Coyle III July 4, 2013 at 1:14pm

    @Matin,

    You can set your position by GPS before you dive, then use an IMU and a compass to provide guidance from waypoint to waypoint knowing the exact speed of the ROV underwater.

    Regards,

    TCIII

  • Martin Evans July 4, 2013 at 1:09pm

    OpenROV is a bit more than just a toy. It's good value for the cost. GPS unfortunately doesn't work underwater.

  • james sowell July 3, 2013 at 7:37am

    http://www.homebuiltrovs.com/rovforum/index.php?sid=aaffd0a5035a881...

    Homebuilt Rov Forum • Index page
  • Acorn July 3, 2013 at 6:04am

    http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIA1Z70K78039&...

    This one's $950. I'd say if you can develop a commercial/serious hobbyist level unit for under $300 you would capture a large share of the market.

  • Acorn July 3, 2013 at 5:59am

    So are there any "borderline" commercial/hobby submarine units that could support APM/FPV, etc.

  • Admin
    Thomas J Coyle III July 3, 2013 at 5:37am

    @Euan,

    The literature, as far as I can tell, says surface only.

    Regards,

    TCIII

  • Euan Ramsay July 3, 2013 at 4:23am
    Just to confirm - this is surface only at the moment...?
  • Euan Ramsay July 3, 2013 at 4:22am
    Needs to be able to submarine, IMO. I know it presents rx/tx issues, but if they're looking for commericial backers, it needs to have commercial application. Most aquatic commercial applications are underwater (checking oil rig legs, inspecting hatcheries, scientific recording of ecosystems etc).
  • Acorn July 3, 2013 at 4:05am

    I think the developers of Ziphius "Screwed the Pooch" when they limited their Kickstarter project to just 25 backers for the basic entry. But I digress.

This reply was deleted.