Increasing the operating depth of a Teflon underwater vehicle using a magnetic field

• Published in: Ocean engineering 2022-04, Vol.250, p.111078, Article 111078
• Main Authors: Jebelli, Ali, Mahabadi, Arezoo, Nayak, Ananth, Ahmad, Rafiq
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUV); EMWorks; Magnetic field; MATLAB; Mini PC; Teflon
• ISSN: 0029-8018; 1873-5258
• DOI: 10.1016/j.oceaneng.2022.111078

One of the most challenging issues for researchers and engineers in the field of autonomous underwater vehicles is the pressure applied to their bodies at different depths of the water. Given the type of application, operational position and expensive, and sensitive equipment of such robots, choosing the body material is very important. In addition to the need to move and maneuver properly in deep waters, the autonomous underwater robots' bodies must withstand various pressures in deep water to protect against failure and crack due to increased pressure from the sea to show maximum operational maneuverability in the deep sea. In this article, a small magnetic system is used to reduce the pressure on the body of an underwater robot with very low power. Using hydrostatic analysis of the robot body and calculating the stress on the body, the maximum stress is obtained at critical points of the underwater robot. To reduce the stress applied to the body, using the superposition principle and plate theory, the secondary pressure in the opposite direction of the primary pressure is calculated, and the repulsive force creates this pressure between two magnets. In this research, the analyses are obtained by the calculated data and using a pressure sensor, the external pressure on the of a Teflon underwater robot is compensated to a very good extent, and the vessel's allowable depth is increased from 8 to 12 m without changing the structure of the body. •Pressure applied to the bodies of autonomous underwater vehicles at different depths of the water is challenging.•A small magnetic system is used to reduce the pressure on the body of an underwater robot with very low power.•The vessel's allowable depth is increased from 8 to 12 m without changing the structure of the body.