A control architecture for Hybrid underwater intervention systems

摘要

As far as we know, currently all the underwater interventions, requiring robotic manipulation, are carried out by using a well-known technology, based on the commercial work class ROVs (Remotely Operated Vehicles). These systems require a lot of support, including a vessel in the surface, where a pilot (i.e. user expert) is able of teleoperating the actions of the ROV by means of an umbilical cable. On the other hand, from the last ten years new research has been developed, promoting in the market the so called Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs), enabling interventions. Obviously the AUVs have some main advantages over ROVs: no vessel, umbilical or pilots are needed now, but presenting a critical drawback: any kind of potential manipulation skills are impossible. Thus, the present situation becomes in a new vehicle: the Hybrid-ROV (HROV), trying to join the best of both systems, ROVs and AUVs. However, new problems arise concerning the HROV control. Now the system can operate in two different ways: autonomous or teleoperated, and so, a new control approach should be developed. This paper presents a control architecture for an HROV, discussing details of this approach from the human-robot interaction viewpoint.