Developments and advances in ground and aerial robotics have presented many end user, ‘off the shelf’ products for use in areas such as search and rescue, recreation, filming, defense forces and sporting. Advances in underwater robotics however have not yet become as established and widespread as their ground and aerial counterparts, though this field is emerging very quickly. Many underwater robotic vessels are built from expensive, complex components and circuitry which are often tethered to a power source and controlled remotely. This greatly limits their effectiveness and potential range. The Goal was to construct two or more simple robotic fish made from ‘off the shelf’ products, making use of modern technologies such as 3D printing to assist in the design and manufacture process. And further that each fish is capable of swarming with other fish and interacting with objects in water. Two points of note is the calibration of IR sensors for use underwater and the magnetic coupling of the tail foil to the fish body.
['Luke Kiebert', 'Matthew Joordens']
Autonomous robotic fish for a swarm environment