Build Your Own Robotic Submarine

Build your own robotic submarine
By Leo Leonidou

(archive article - Wednesday, September 10, 2008)

SCHOOLCHILDREN and teachers across the island are being given a unique opportunity to work with one of the biggest names in world education, on an underwater research project.
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), in collaboration with the Cyprus Institute and Education Ministry, is holding a hands-on educational training activity on how to construct an underwater remotely operated vehicle (ROV) called the Sea Perch.
Last weekend, MIT and Cyprus Institute staff trained local teachers on how to build the Sea Perch and they will this weekend instruct over 100 school children on how to construct their own.
Michael Soroka is a Research Engineer at the Autonomous Underwater Vehicle Laboratory at MIT’s Sea Grant College Programme.
He told the Mail that, “it’s fantastic to bring this technology to Cyprus and this is our first international programme.”
He explained that the aim is to get children interested in science, technology and underwater research and that the Sea Perch is a tool that gives hands-on experience.
“We chose Cyprus for the pilot programme as our MIT director is actually Cypriot and has always had close ties with the Cyprus Institute,” he explained.
“Three students in each group will build their own Sea Perch which they can use in a variety of ways, such as learning about robotics, physics and water sampling,” Soroka said.
The children will learn how to assemble their ROVs from kits consisting of everyday items such as PVC pipe and electrical tape, with each Perch costing €45 to construct.
When the students are finished, they will take the electrically-powered vehicles to portable pools, where they’ll manoeuvre them by remote control.
“In the US, students get so excited that they come up with new ideas on design and function,” said Soroka. “It is basically a robotic submarine but can be integrated with cameras, sensors and manipulators.
“Aside from its educational benefits, the Sea Perch is great for tracking global climate change and is a fantastic integration to engineering.”
The 23-year-old Research Engineer has developed and tested underwater, autonomous submarine robots which can reach 99 per cent of the ocean floor at depths exceeding 6,000 metres.
He said that he is “very excited to be working with the Cyprus Institute and Education Ministry. So far, everything has gone better than expected due to the enthusiasm of all involved.”
The AUV Lab atMITSeaGrantCollegeProgramme
DEDICATED to the development and application of autonomous underwater vehicles, the laboratory is a leading developer of advanced unmanned marine robots.
Because the vehicles can function without tethers, cables, or remote control, they have a multitude of applications in oceanography, environmental monitoring and underwater resource studies. The lab also serves as a training ground for graduate and undergraduate students, visiting engineers and scientists, from around the world, who both learn from and contribute to the Lab’s current research activities.
Founded in 1966 by Congress, theNational Sea Grant College Programmeis a network of 30 programmes working to promote the conservation and sustainable development of marine resources through research, education, and outreach.
Sea Grant is funded by the US Department of Commerce’sNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
MIT was designated as a Sea Grant College in 1970 – the first institution of higher learning to be appointed as such.
This research programme, dedicated outreach programmes and integrated educational projects are aimed at providing real-world solutions to coastal questions and at helping to create the coastal stewards of tomorrow. The innovative marine research draws on the unique resources of higher educational institutions in Massachusetts and the region and addresses needs ranging from local to global in scope.
Its particular areas of focus and expertise include autonomous underwater vehicles, aquaculture and fisheries, coastal management, underwater communications and biotechnology. The intensely collaborative approach assures that they involve a wide specter of industrial and governmental groups. They also focus their energies in transferring their gained knowledge to industry.