Design Contribution So Far
Designed a Camera Mount for the camera that will be used in our AUV, implemented it into the water tight enclosure from blue robotics, also designed the bracket disk that is inside the enclosure, and is connected via a standoff mount. The assembly is shown on the left.
More design contributions to come as the project progresses!
What I Learned From My Research
Thruster Placement & Optimization
Learned how thruster positioning affects stability and control of an AUV.
Placing the center of buoyancy above the center of mass creates a restoring torque that keeps the vehicle upright.
Symmetrical thruster placement ensures balance, while angled or edge-mounted thrusters increase torque and allow full 6-DOF control (surge, sway, heave, yaw, pitch, roll).
Learned that the relationship between thrust and RPM is non-linear.
Cavitation & Flow Principles
Learned about cavitation, when high RPM creates low-pressure zones, water boils into vapour bubbles due to lower boiling point, then when they move to higher pressure zones they collapse violently releasing energy that can cause pitting, erosion, and noise.
Gained understanding of fluid flow from high to low pressure and how Bernoulli’s principle explains pressure drops at higher velocities.
Learned how vortex shedding and flow separation waste energy and destabilize the AUV.
Had to present my research In meetings, which improved my ability to present ideas, accept feedback, and refine concepts in a collaborative engineering environment.