Finite element analysis of carbon fiber reinforced plastic body frame for seabed robot, Crabster200

Abstract

This paper describes finite element analysis(FEA) for the body frame of 200 meter class multi-legged subsea robot, Crabster200(CR200). The body frame of CR200 is designed as a rib cage in order to disperse applied external loads and is made of carbon fiber reinforced plastic(CFRP) Therefore, the frame is lighter and stronger than a frame of the other conventional materials. In order to perform the reasonable FEA for CFRP body frame, we carried out specimen test of CFRP. Using the obtained material properties from the test, we performed modal analysis and FEA with respect to certain load conditions. The first load condition is when the CR200 stands in the air and the other condition is when the robot stands in underwater. Finally, this paper presents the results of FEA for CFRP body frame.