NOAA Activity - Which Robot When?
You will be in the role of Chief Engineer of Exploration. You need to investigate underwater robots that can be used to perform various jobs that support scientific exploration of the deep ocean. You will work together to explore the tools and capabilities of a number of different ROVs and AUVs and determine which of these robots is the best one to complete specific missions.
STEP 1. Learn about your robot. You will be assigned a robot to learn about. Once you have your assigned robot, go to the link below that matches your robot and learn as much as you can about it. Take notes on your Exploration Vehicle Compatibility Survey
Let's think about how to go about choosing the best robot for the job.
1. How can underwater robots help ocean explorers gather data under a variety of underwater conditions?
What conditions make underwater exploration challenging, compared to terrestrial (land) exploration?
What capabilities do underwater robots have that exceed those of humans?
2. How do ocean explorers determine which piece of technology is best suited for their mission?
When selecting a tool for any job, what must you consider?
What factors should be considered regarding a dive mission?
What are the various functions that an ROV or AUV can perform?
STEP 2. Make sure you have all the information you need about your robot.
People who had the same robot will group together.
Within your group, help each other make sure you have all the important information about your robot.
STEP 3. Receive mission description and learn about your mission. Your group will receive a mission description. Read the mission description and take notes on the special aspects of your mission by completing the table on the sheet below your mission description. This will help you decide what is the best robot for the job.
STEP 4. Find the right robot. The robot you were originally assigned is not the best robot for your mission.
You need to find a robot that is the best choice for your mission. We can do this in a couple of different ways.
A. Group work:
One person from each group reads out their mission while the class listens.
Students from other groups decide if their robot is right for the mission.
Try to match the right robots to the missions.
OR
B. Independent work:
Students use resources including fact sheets linked above to find the correct robot for their mission.
When you have decided which robot is best for your mission, you need to write the name of the robot on the bottom of your Mission Sheet.
This expedition will explore using a new wide-field camera array on ROV Hercules to capture three-dimensional stereoscopic imagery from the seabed