NAVSEA Robosub Competition (2015-2016)

The AVUSI sponsors an annual competition for autonomous robotic submarines (Robosubs). The competition is hosted in San Diego, CA, and challenges engineering skills across multiple disciplines. The competition team brings together engineers from across the Palouse, but this page highlights the efforts of the University of Idaho Capstone Design team.
==Problem Definition==
The main goal for the year is to design and produce a working, autonomous submarine capable of completing specified goals and tasks while meeting club/competition requirements. 
===Background===
Launched in 1997 and co-sponsored by the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) and the Office of Naval Research (ONR), Robosub aimed to advance development of Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs) by challenging new generations of engineers to perform realistic missions in an underwater environment. The competition is open to high school and college teams from around the world and is held each year at the U.S. Navy Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center Pacific's TRANSDEC Anechoic pool in San Diego, CA.
===Design Objectives===
The Autonomous Submarine must be able to complete numerous tasks designated by the competition. 
These tasks include:
 Move through a starting gate
 Navigating from task to task on a course using visual and audio cues
 Dropping markers at specified locations
 Accurately deploying torpedoes at targets
 Locate pinger and surface in appropriate area (typically an octagon)
How well each task is completed goes towards the overall team score for the competition. Other scoring can be attributed to subjective scoring.
These tasks include:
 Team Website
 Technical merit (Journal)
 Written Style (Journal)
 Tech accomplishments
 Craftsmanship
 Team Uniform
 Team Video
 Discretionary Static Points
===Specifications===
General Requirements 	Specific Requirements 	Marginal Targets 	Ideal Targets 	
Maneuverable 	Control in the X,Y,Z directions	Ability to travel in these directions at a rate of .25 ft/s	Ability to travel in these directions at a rate of .5 ft/s 	
Maneuverable 	Control over yaw 	360° Rotation in under 8 seconds 	360° Rotation in under 6 seconds 	
Maneuverable 	Control over roll and pitch 	Stabilization within 3 seconds 	Stabalization within 1 seconds 	
Stable 	Statically Stable 	Center of mass bellow center of buoyancy 	Center of mass bellow center of buoyancy/balanced across centerlines 	
Stable 	Dynamically Stable 	Ability to travel 5 ft with minor corrections 	Ability to travel 15 ft with no corrections 	
Stable 	Positively Buoyant 	Buoyant by at least .5% of mass 	Buoyant by exactly .5% of mass 	
Reliable 	Watertight housings 	Watertight up to 40 ft depths 	Watertight up to 60 ft depths 	
Reliable 	Electronics remain cool 	Continuous operation time of 45 min 	Continuous operation time 1.5 hours 	
Small size and Low Weight 	Small outer dimensions 	8' x 5' x 5' 	Less than 8' x 5' x 5' 	
Small size and Low Weight 	Low weight in air 	Less than 100lb 	Less than 50lb 	
Easy to work on 	Modular components 	Sub systems can be separated 	All main systems can be separated 	
Easy to work on 	Replacement Parts 	Main components can be replaced in 20 min 	Main/minor components can be replaced in 15 min 	
Easy to work on 	Easy to transport and store 	Easily carried by two people 	Easily carried by two people with a special container and stand 	
Accurate Peripherals 	Accurate Torpedo Launchers 	Torpedoes accurate on 10" target from a distance of 2 ft 	Torpedoes accurate on 7" target from a distance of 2 ft 	
Accurate Peripherals 	Consistent PVC grabber 	Grasps and Releases PVC structure consistently 	Grasps and Releases PVC structure with ease 	
Accurate Peripherals 	Safe 	Low open circuit voltage 	Less than 60VDC 	Less than 50VDC
Easy-to-Operate kill switches	Safe 	Clearly marked and readily activated 	Clearly marked and readily activated with protection against accidental operation	
Responsive 	Safe 	Keyboard input operates the thrusters 	All thrusters are controlled by keyboard 	Completely Autonomous
==Project Learning==
Organized by Team
400px|thumb|left|New Design
300px|thumb|right|2016 Battery Tube Design
300px|thumb|right|2016 Power Housing
===Mechanical Engineering===
 
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 Camera Waterproofing
 The cameras selected by the other teams will be mounted to the sub and waterproofed by the mechanical engineering team. They will need to be mounted such that they will perform as required for the competition, but do not interfere with other devices. Overall mission is to make the camera housing completely water proof, using a fish lens for versatility. Mounting will be designed accordingly to work with the case
 
 Battery Housing Efficient Battery Exchange
Create waterproof carrying tube for the sub’s battery which allows for efficient swapping during testing.
 
 Power Housing O-Ring Face Seal
Create a new environment for the power control of the sub to reside free of water. Using an O-ring face seal, wing nut (hand controlled) pressure, and a experimental rectangular design, a housing with 24 "penetrator" bolts is able to supply power connection to the rest of the AUV without being in the main hull. Turns out that acrylic is not a good material to face seal with.
 
 
 Buoyancy Approximations
 Without the entire AUV assembled it is impossible to know whether or not our allowances for buoyancy were valid. All of our designs were pool tested for buoyancy and all proved buoyant besides the battery housing (near neutral). In the end the goal is to confirm the new volume of the submarine to determine 0.5% of total mass and buoyancy. This is important because the competition rules states that “All vehicles must be buoyant by at least one half of one percent (0.5%) of their mass when they have been shut off through the kill switch.”
 
===Computer Science===
 Sub Simulation
 Expansions will be made to the sub simulation software to allow it to interface with the sub AI, movement and vision software as a stand-in for the submarine. This will allow it to be used for easy testing of changes made to these systems. 
==Team Information==
Picture	Bio 	Discipline
 	Jace Westcott: Jace is a senior at the University of Idaho and working towards his Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering. In his spare time he enjoys being outside and spending time with friends/family. Hobbies include snowboarding, and soccer. He's a nice guy, but don't let that fool you he's definitely lady's man. 	ME
 	Dylan Christianson: A mechanical engineering student with a minor in physics and math at the University of Idaho. A Hawaiian/Norweigan, native born Alaskan he has spent many summers working on a fishing boat, but plays soccer and water polo on his off time. He is currently employed by the US Navy, in the Nuclear Propulsion Officer Candidate Program. CODENAME: Brown Bear 	ME
 	Mike Clark: He is a Senior Engineering student at University of Idaho working on a Bachelors of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering along with minors in Mathematics and Physics. He is the team leader as well as one of the head designers on the team. In his spare time, he enjoys playing water polo, volleyball and playing the saxophone and guitar. He is an avid skier and enjoys fishing and mountain-biking. 	ME
 	Kirk Delmas: Kirk is a senior Mechanical Engineering student at the University of Idaho. Currently is in the Navy ROTC program at the University of Idaho, and will attend Dive and Salvage School in Florida upon graduation. He is the brawn behind the operation. His hobbies include water polo, rock climbing, fishing, snowboarding, and working out. 	ME
 	Craig Allen: Craig is a senior Computer Science student interested in user interfacing and artificial intelligence, especially social AIs. He is prone to deep philosophical discussion, especially those that involve his particular fields of interest. In his free time he plays quite a lot of tabletop games, such as Dungeons & Dragons or Pathfinder, as well as video games, especially those which have a strong social element or a focus on multiplayer.	CS