Advanced Manipulation for Underwater Sampling

Abstract

This entry deals with the kinematic self-coordination aspects to be managed by parts of underwater floating manipulators, whenever employed for sample collections at the seafloor.aaaa Kinematic self-coordination is here intended as the autonomous ability exhibited by the system in closed loop specifying the most appropriate reference velocities for its main constitutive parts (i.e., the supporting vehicle and the arm) in order to execute the sample collection with respect to both safety and best operability conditions for the system while also guaranteeing the needed “execution agility” in performing the task, particularly useful in case of underwater repeated collections. To this end, the devising and employment of a unifying control framework capable of guaranteeing the above properties will be outlined.aaaa Such a framework is however intended to only represent the so-called Kinematic Control Layer (KCL) overlaying a Dynamic Control Layer (DCL), where the overall system dynamic and hydrodynamic effects are suitably accounted for, to the benefit of closed loop tracking of the reference system velocities. Since the DCL design is carried out in a way which is substantially independent from the system mission(s), it will not constitute a specific topic of this entry, even if some orienting references about it will be provided.aaaa At this entry’s end, as a follow-up of the resulting structural invariance of the devised KCL framework, future challenges addressing much wider and complex underwater applications will be foreseen, beyond the here-considered sample collection one.