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Projecte llegit

Títol: Data processing and control systems for marine robotics

Estudiants que han llegit aquest projecte:

Director/a: SALAMÍ SAN JUAN, ESTHER

Departament: DAC

Títol: Data processing and control systems for marine robotics

Data inici oferta: 31-01-2024     Data finalització oferta: 30-09-2024


Estudis d'assignació del projecte:
    MU DRONS
Tipus: Individual
 
Lloc de realització: Fora UPC    
 
        Supervisor/a extern: Albert Ruzafa
        Institució/Empresa: GPA SEABOTS, S.
        Titulació del Director/a: Aerospace Systems Engineering
 
Paraules clau:
Photogrammetry, drone, UAS, UAV, ROV, Underwater, data analysis, 3D, CA, Path Planning, AI
 
Descripció del contingut i pla d'activitats:
In this master's thesis, we want to cover different systems that are going to be implemented in an unmanned surface vehicle that the company is developing.
The systems to be developed are the following:
1. Collision avoidance system: a collision avoidance system will be implemented for the ship. Using a LiDAR and cameras, the ship will detect obstacles and will avoid them.
2. Multirobot: a drone will be developed so that it can do orthophotos and that can take off and land autonomously on the ship. Also, it will deploy a ROV to monitor underwater assets.
3. Data analysis: the data that the ship can collect will be analyzed to determine the amount of blue carbon in the sea.
4. 3D images: A system will be developed to make 3D images with an ROV.
The student will be working full time (9 AM to 6 PM) mostly dedicated at writing the master thesis and developing the different systems.
 
Overview (resum en anglès):
In this master's thesis, three systems for an unmanned surface vehicle (USV) are designed, developed, and tested. These systems include a collision avoidance system, a method to create 3D models of underwater structures, and an integration system for a USV and a remotely operated vehicle (ROV).

The first system utilizes LiDAR technology along with four RGB cameras to detect the location of objects around the USV. Based on this information,
received via an MQTT channel, the USV defines protection zones for each target. If the USV's protection zone intersects with that of a detected object, it enters a collision alert state and calculates an evasive manoeuvre in accordance with COLREGs. The COLREGs (Convention on the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea) are international rules established by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) to prevent collisions at sea. This system enhances the autonomy of the USV by enabling it to avoid obstacles in its path.

The second system facilitates the scanning of submerged structures using an ROV and then reconstructing them into 3D models. Three methods were
investigated for this purpose: stereoscopy, structure from motion (SFM), and neural radiance fields (NeRF). Testing various programs and cameras revealed that both SFM and stereoscopy are effective options for creating 3D models of
underwater structures.

The third system involves the transportation and remote control of an ROV using a USV, leveraging the USV's onboard computer. This system includes a
winch and a framework that secures and tows the ROV safely. The entire system is operated remotely using the USV's remote control.

These three systems have been developed for a smaller USV, with the goal of future implementation in a larger USV to improve performance. This approach allows the testing and refinement of these systems on a currently robust USV.

This work covers a wide range of topics, including data processing, MQTT communication, image processing, and both hardware and software
development.

By the end of the project, the three targeted systems were successfully developed, meeting the initial objectives. A collision avoidance system for the USV, a 3D modeling system using marine photogrammetry, and a docking system for the ROV to the USV were all completed.

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