Hybrid Aerial-Aquatic Vehicle for Large Scale High Spatial Resolution Marine Observation

Hybrid Aerial-Aquatic Vehicle (HAAV), which is a hybrid of underwater gliders and fixed-wing drone, is energy-efficient, highly maneuverable and suitable for marine observation of large scale and high spatial resolution. In this paper, a novel scheme is proposed for autonomously sampling multiple water columns in relative short time with long distance and complex obstacles between each other using (HAAV). The scheme exploits energy-efficient spiral-down motion to sample each water column, followed by the pull-up motion with the propeller into the sky and fly to the next water column. Once flying, the vehicle uses both Global Positioning System guidance and Remote-controlled System to reach the next column location. To enhance the path-tracking performance, closed-loop control is used in the spiral motion, and a depth transducer is installed to regulate depth during gliding. The HAAV prototype has undergone the field test in both Shanghai Jiao Tong University Underwater Engineering Institute Co. (SJTU-UEIC) and Zhiyuan Lake at depths of 1, 2 and 0.5 meter. MATLAB Simulink together with the time-stamped photos are also used to simulate the gestures during the process of egression and gliding with the data recorded by the sensors so that detailed improvement can be achieved in the future.