The 2 nd Annual MATE New England Regional ROV Competition May 8 th, 2004 University of Rhode Island
Major Sponsors The MATE (Marine Advanced Technology Education) Center Rhode Island Sea Grant URI Robotics Education and Research Institute The Marine Technology Society, New England Section The University of Rhode Island, Department of Ocean Engineering
Today s Presentation NE03 ROV Competition review NE04 ROV Competition Mission statement Competition scoring Underwater reef & pool layout Mission task breakdown Educational Benefits Technical Challenges Team Resources Acknowledgements & Questions
NE03 ROV Competition Held at Cambridge Rindge and Latin School, Boston, MA 13 competing teams Mission was to collect C-Probes out of a mock-up of the Titanic wreck Titanic mock-up used for NE03 competition C-Probe schematic
NE04 ROV Competition Will be held at URI s Tootell Aquatic Center on May 8 th, 2004 Currently ~10 teams registered Competition scenario: Explore Mystery Reef and perform seven marine science and recovery mission tasks within 25 minutes
Competition Scoring Pool Mission Score: 100 Points Engineering and Communication: 110 Points Engineering: 80 Points Technical Report: 20 Points Poster: 10 Points Total Possible Score: 210 Points
Pool Mission: Mystery Reef Construction: ½ PVC tubing frame, black plastic cover Reef will stand no more than 4 feet off of the bottom Exact layout of the reef will remain unknown until competition
U-Boat Mockup *This U-Boat design has been slightly modified; the stern section is smaller than shown in this drawing
Competition Layout General layout of the Tootell Aquatic Center for NE04
Mystery Reef: Mission Tasks Task 1: Find and recover sidescan sonar towfish Task 2: Find and identify the Captain s Bell Task 3: Simulate patching a leaking barrel Task 4: Find and collect all five of a T.B.A. species of fish from the reef Task 5: Find the source of the methane and tag the tubeworm cluster next to it Task 6: Find and tag the mussel bed Task 7: Find the authigenic carbonate formation and bring back 5 samples
Mission Tasks: A Closer Look Task 1: Find and recover the sidescan sonar towfish A model of a sidescan sonar towfish (1 m in length) will be placed in a random location along the reef. Using a length of poly line, hook onto the sidescan s U-bracket and then pull up the model. Weight in air: 1 kg
Mission Tasks: A Closer Look (cont.) Task 2: Find and identify the Captain s Bell The captain s bell will be located in the front compartment of the U-Boat wreck. The ROV must locate the bell and correctly read the inscribed message. Task 3: Simulate patching a leaking barrel The ROV must search the reef for a leaking barrel - a 1-gallon paint can with a black spot on its upper surface. Once found, the vehicle must place a patch over the black spot.
Mission Tasks: A Closer Look (cont.) Task 4: Find and collect all five of a T.B.A. species of fish from the reef Five species of fish : five per species = a total of 25 fish scattered among the reef. The judges will name a single species for each team to find. The ROV must find these five specific fish and move them into a collection basket, where they can be brought to the surface.
Mission Tasks: A Closer Look (cont) Task 5: Find the source of the methane and tag the tubeworm cluster next to it The vehicle must identify the location of the tubeworm cluster and drop a tag onto it. The cluster can be found by looking for methane bubbles - a stream of air bubbles located directly adjacent to the bed. Task 6: Find and tag the mussel bed Same as Task 5, without the bubbles.
Mission Tasks: A Closer Look (cont.) Task 7: Find the authigenic carbonate formation and bring back 5 samples The ROV must find the pile of authigenic carbonate- small pieces of lava rock (pumice)- and retrieve 5 samples to be brought to the surface.
Educational Benefits Advanced introduction to robotics and marine technology Team project skills Competition is an exercise for marine biology/archeology units Technical writing The North Kingstown (RI) ROV team (2003)
Technical Challenges Some kind of manipulator or arm to lift objects/ deliver tags Visual identification/ observation Speed and mobility Variable ballast or thruster compensation for payload Sealed vs. unsealed motors Carl Hayden High School s (CA) ROV entry for 2003, undergoing sea trials last year
Advanced Components Several- function manipulator Rheostatic/ variable voltage controls Secondary camera & video channel Lighting
Team Resources Visit: http://www.marinetech.org/rov_competition/resources.php Scholarships Carillo Underwater Systems MTS Student Scholarships Books: How To Build Your Own Underwater Robot (Harry Bohm) Technical advice: URI MTS Student Chapter
NE04 ROV Competition Saturday, May 8 th, 2004: 9-5PM Tootell Aquatic Center, University of Rhode Island Kingston For more information, visit www.marinetech.org or contact: Brennan Phillips c/o Department of Ocean Engineering 217 Sheets Building University of Rhode Island- Narragansett Bay Campus Narragansett, RI 02882 phillib@egr.uri.edu
Acknowledgements (thus far!) Jill Zande, MATE Outreach Director/Competition Coordinator Prof. James Miller, URI Ocean Engineering Don Jagoe and Jim Case, MTS New England Section MTS: URI Student Chapter Richard Hartman, North Kingstown High School This presentation was created by Brennan Phillips on 1.29.2004