Submit to Special Issue Submit Abstract to Special Issue Review for Applied Sciences Propose a Special Issue

Journal Menu

Journal Browser

Recent Advances in Underwater Vehicles

Print Special Issue Flyer
Special Issue Editors
Special Issue Information
Keywords
Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue
Published Papers

A special issue of Applied Sciences (ISSN 2076-3417). This special issue belongs to the section "Robotics and Automation".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 March 2025 | Viewed by 6321

Share This Special Issue

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Seongyeol Yoo

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

Department of Robot Engineering, Keimyung University, Dalseo-gu, Republic of Korea
Interests: underwater walking robot; underwater robotics; underwater vehicle

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In the era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, robot technology has become an essential technology. Especially in the maritime field, it is a crucial technology due to the unique environmental constraints posed by water, making it increasingly necessary for ocean exploration and the development of marine resources. Submarine robots have made significant advancements over the past 60 years. Starting in the 1950s to 1970s in the defense sector and transitioning to the private sector, particularly in the offshore industry, during the 1980s and 1990s. Subsequently, they began to be employed in various fields, such as marine survey, exploration, rescue missions, and patrolling, expanding their operational range to deeper and more distant ocean areas. This progress has been made possible by the collaboration of various fields of technology, including design, sensing, manufacturing, communication, and navigation technologies. This Special Issue aims to introduce the recent advances in underwater vehicles. The issue welcomes all kinds of underwater vehicles, such as ROV, AUV, UG, and UAUV, and all the research and review topics associated with underwater vehicles, such as novel design, navigation and control, planning, and decisions.

In this Special Issue, original research articles and reviews are all welcome, on recent theoretical and experimental works. Topics of interest for publication include, but are not limited to, the following:

Underwater robot
Unmanned underwater vehicles (ROV, AUV, etc.);
Underwater sensing, multi-modal sensor fusion, and manipulation for UUVs;
Vehicle guidance, navigation, path planning in UUVs;
Control and modeling for UUVs;
Cooperative underwater vehicle manipulator systems;
Networked UUVs;
Intelligence and autonomy for underwater robotic vehicles;
Machine Learning methods for underwater vehicles;
Unmanned aerial and underwater vehicle;
Ocean robotics;
Underwater detection;
Underwater robot vision;
CFD for underwater robots;

Dr. Seongyeol Yoo
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Applied Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

underwater robots
underwater sensors
navigation
machine learning for underwater robots

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
e-Book format: Special Issues with more than 10 articles can be published as dedicated e-books, ensuring wide and rapid dissemination.

Further information on MDPI's Special Issue polices can be found here.

Published Papers (5 papers)

Download All Papers

Order results

Result details

Show export options Show export options

Select all

Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

18 pages, 25984 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Optimal Attitude Determination for the CR200 Underwater Walking Robot

by Seok Pyo Yoon, Sung-Ho Jeong, Dong Kyun Kim, Seong-yeol Yoo, Bong-Huan Jun, Jong-Boo Han, Hyungwoo Kim and Hyung Taek Ahn

Appl. Sci. 2024, 14(23), 11027; https://doi.org/10.3390/app142311027 - 27 Nov 2024

Viewed by 591

Abstract

The Crabster CR200 is an underwater walking robot inspired by crabs and lobsters, designed for precise seabed inspection and manipulation. It maintains stability and position on the seafloor, even in strong currents, by adjusting its posture through six legs, each with four degrees of freedom. The key advantage of the CR200 lies in its ability to resist drifting in strong currents by adapting its posture to maintain its position on the seafloor. However, information is still lacking on which specific posture generates the maximum downforce to ensure optimal stability in the presence of currents and the seabed. This study aims to determine the fluid forces acting on the CR200 in various postures using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) and identify the posture that generates the maximum downforce. The posture is defined by two parameters: angle of attack and seafloor clearance, represented by the combination of the robot’s pitch angle and distance to the seabed. By varying these parameters, we identified the posture that produces the greatest downforce. Through a series of analyses, we identified two main fluid dynamic principles affecting the downforce on a robot close to the seabed. First, an optimal pitch angle exists that generates the maximum downward lift on the robot’s body. Secondly, there is an ideal distance from the seabed that produces maximum suction on the bottom surface, thereby creating a strong Venturi effect. Based on these principles, we determined the optimal robot posture to achieve maximum downforce in strong current conditions. The optimal underwater robot posture identified in this study could be applied to similar robots operating on the seafloor. Furthermore, the methodology adopted in this study for determining the optimal posture can serve as a reference for establishing operational postures for similar underwater robots. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Underwater Vehicles)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

33 pages, 10379 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Modifications to ArduSub That Improve BlueROV SITL Accuracy and Design of Hybrid Autopilot

by Patrick Ng and Michael Krieg

Appl. Sci. 2024, 14(17), 7453; https://doi.org/10.3390/app14177453 - 23 Aug 2024

Viewed by 1138

Abstract

Improvements to ArduSub for the BlueROV2 (BROV2) Heavy, necessary for accurate simulation and autonomous controller design, were implemented and validated in this work. The simulation model was made more accurate with new data obtained from real-world testing and values from the literature. The manual control algorithm in the BROV2 firmware was replaced with one compatible with automatic control. In a Robot Operating System (ROS), a proportional–derivative (PD) controller to assist augmented reality (AR) pilots in controlling angular degrees of freedom (DOF) of the vehicle was implemented. Open-loop testing determined the yaw hydrodynamic model of the vehicle. A general mathematical method to determine PD gains as a function of the desired closed-loop performance was outlined. Testing was carried out in the updated simulation environment. Step response testing found that a modified derivative gain was necessary. Comparable real-world results were obtained using settings determined in the simulation environment. Frequency response testing of the modified yaw control law discovered that the bandwidth of the nonlinear system had a one-to-one correspondence with the desired closed-loop natural frequency of a simplified linear approximation. The control law was generalized for angular DOF and linear DOF were operated with open-loop control. A full six-DOF simulated dive demonstrated excellent tracking. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Underwater Vehicles)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

14 pages, 3697 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Effect of a Limited Underactuated Posterior Joint on the Speed and Energy Efficiency of a Fish Robot

by Yanic Heinen, Ivan Tanev and Tatsuaki Kimura

Appl. Sci. 2024, 14(12), 5010; https://doi.org/10.3390/app14125010 - 8 Jun 2024

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 884

Abstract

Autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) commonly use screw propellers to move in a water environment. However, compared to the propeller-driven AUV, bio-inspired AUVs feature a higher energy efficiency, longer lifespan (due to a lack of cavitation), and better eco-friendliness (due to lower noise, a lack of vibrations, and a weaker wake). To generate propulsion, the design of fish robots—viewed as a special case of a bio-inspired AUV—comprise multiple actuated joints. Underactuated joints have also been adopted in bio-inspired AUVs, primarily for the purpose of achieving a simpler design and more realistic and biologically plausible locomotion. In our work, we propose a limitedly underactuated posterior (tail) joint of a fish robot with the intention of achieving a higher swimming speed and better energy efficiency of the robot. The limited underactuation is achieved by allowing the joint to move freely but only within a limited angular range. The experimental results verified that, for relatively small angular ranges, the limitedly underactuated joint is superior to both fully actuated and fully underactuated joints in that it results in faster and more energy-efficient locomotion of the fish robot. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Underwater Vehicles)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

22 pages, 9567 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Position Tracking Control of 4-DOF Underwater Robot Leg Using Deep Learning

by Jin-Hyeok Bae and Jung-Yup Kim

Appl. Sci. 2024, 14(3), 1031; https://doi.org/10.3390/app14031031 - 25 Jan 2024

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1597

Abstract

This paper presents a novel hybrid control method for position tracking of an underwater quadruped walking robot. The proposed approach combines an existing position-tracking control method with a deep-learning neural network. The neural network compensates for non-linear dynamic characteristics, such as the effect of fluid, without relying on mathematical modeling. To achieve this, a Multi-Layer Perceptron neural network is designed to analyze joint torque in relation to the joint angle and angular velocity of the robot, as well as the position and orientation of the foot tip and environmental data. The improvement in tracking control performance is evaluated using a 4-DOF underwater robot leg. For the neural network design, position tracking control data, including dynamic characteristics, were collected through position command-based position tracking control. Afterward, a learning model was constructed and trained to predict joint torque related to the robot’s motion and posture. This learning process incorporates non-linear dynamic characteristics, such as joint friction and the influence of fluid, in the joint torque prediction. The proposed method is then combined with conventional task-space PD control to perform position-tracking control with enhanced performance. Finally, the proposed method is evaluated using the underwater robot leg and compared to a single task-space PD controller. The proposed method demonstrates higher position accuracy with similar joint torque output, thereby increasing compliance and tracking performance simultaneously. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Underwater Vehicles)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

19 pages, 8873 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Establishment of a Pressure Variation Model for the State Estimation of an Underwater Vehicle

by Ji-Hye Kim, Thi Loan Mai, Aeri Cho, Namug Heo, Hyeon Kyu Yoon, Jin-Yeong Park and Sung-Hoon Byun

Appl. Sci. 2024, 14(3), 970; https://doi.org/10.3390/app14030970 - 23 Jan 2024

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1047

Abstract

This study presents a pressure variation model (PVM) derived from the regression analysis of dynamic pressure computed through numerical analysis to estimate the velocity of underwater vehicles. Furthermore, the drift angle estimation algorithm was developed using predicted velocities from PVM and pressure sensor differences. This approach estimates the single-motion states of underwater vehicles, such as straight, turning, and gliding. Furthermore, it confirms the viability of state estimation even in multiple motions involving turning and gliding motion with a drift angle and spiral motion. The comparison with numerical analysis results validated prediction accuracy within 15%. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Underwater Vehicles)

► Show Figures

Journal Menu

Journal Browser

Recent Advances in Underwater Vehicles

Share This Special Issue

Special Issue Editor

Special Issue Information

Keywords

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

Published Papers (5 papers)

Research

Further Information

Guidelines

MDPI Initiatives

Follow MDPI