IJSTE - International Journal of Science Technology & Engineering | Volume 2 | Issue 09 | March 2016

ISSN (online): 2349-784X

Surveying of Underwater Robot for Marine

Exploration
D. S. Vidhya
Assistant Professor
Department of Electronic and Telecommunication
Don Bosco College of Engineering

Puja S Patil
UG Student
Department of Electronic and Telecommunication
Don Bosco College of Engineering

Rishwesh Dalvi
UG Student
Department of Electronic and Telecommunication
Don Bosco College of Engineering

Sunny Cardozo
UG Student
Department of Electronic and Telecommunication
Don Bosco College of Engineering

Abstract
This paper describes a small underwater robot designed for marine exploration, with sensors and XBee for wireless transmission.
The robot is based on the Arduino platform, which is used extensively as an experimental testbed. The movement of the robot will
be controlled by wirelessly transmitting commands via Xbee. The components and construction of the robot are described.
Preliminary tests of pH measurement, pressure measurement and temperature measurement are analysed and reported.
Keywords: wireless transmission, Xbee, arduino testbed, ph sensor, temperature sensor, pressure sensor
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
I.

INTRODUCTION

Earth is roughly 71% covered in water and a large portion of it is unexplored. This underwater robot is a low-cost tele-robotic
submarine built with the goal of making underwater exploration affordable. It has the ability to collect valuable data like
temperature, pressure, pH value and species monitoring at different depths. Based on the paper on robot operating to sense water
resources i.e., sea animals behaviour, sand level, water gravity [1], XBee communication, an enhanced wireless system is used for
data transmission wirelessly. In this prototype, we introduce a new idea of wireless robot control system which is used as a tool to
perform wireless control of the robot while it measures the parameters underwater. XBee is used for wireless transmission of the
data. Arduino is used for interfacing sensors and motors. It is an open-source platform used for building electronics projects.
Arduino consists of both a physical programmable circuit board (often referred to as a microcontroller) and a piece of software, or
IDE (Integrated Development Environment) that runs on your computer, used to write and upload computer code to the physical
board.
In recent trends the robots are working in vast applications, if our concept is adopted, it will enhance and increasing monitoring
function done by the robot underwater.
II. ROBOTS ELECTRONIC MODULE
The electronic module covers all of the electronic components required for the functioning of the ROV i.e. sensors, microcontrollers
etc.

Fig. 1:

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Xbee Communication
For Xbee to transmit and receive data two Xbees are need one of which works as a transmitter and the other works as a receiver.
Xbee can work either in AT mode or API mode. In AT mode is used when the network required isnt complex and only point to
point connections are required.
API mode is used for much complex networks where a central Xbee acts as a coordinator and the others act as end points. Xbee
is connected to the PC using an interface that enables the use of an USB cable.

Fig. 2:

For communication to take place between 2 Xbees, one has to be configured as a router and the other as a coordinator, and to
configure the Xbees a serial terminal program is used. For Xbees to communicate with each other, the three of the most important
XBee settings PAN ID, MY address, and destination address have to be specified.
PAN ID: Personal area network ID:
The network ID is a hexadecimal value between 0 and 0xFFFF. XBees can only communicate with each other if they have the
same network ID
My Address:
Each XBee in a network should be assigned a 16-bit address which is referred to as MY address or the source address.
-DESTINATION ADDRESS:
The destination address, determines which source address an XBee can send data to. For one XBee to be able to send data to
another, it must have the same destination address as the other XBees source
Software
XCTU:
XCTU is a free multi-platform application designed to enable developers to interact with Digi RF modules through a simple-touse graphical interface. It includes new tools that make it easy to set-up, configure and test XBee RF modules.
Arduino IDE:The open-source Arduino Software (IDE) makes it easy to write code and upload it to the board. It runs on Windows,
Mac OS X, and Linux. The environment is written in Java and based on Processing and other open-source software
Temperature Sensor - DS18B20
DS18B20 is a Digital Sensor. Measures Temperatures from-55C to +125C, 0.5C Accuracy from -10C to +85C.In DS18B20,
Each DS18B20 has a unique 64-bit serial code, which allows multiple DS18B20s to function on the same 1-Wire bus,so
information is sent to/from the sensor over a 1-Wire interface, so that only one wire (and ground) needs to be connected from a
central microprocessor to a DS18B20.The resolution of the DS18B20 is configurable (9, 10, 11, or 12 bits),

Fig. 3:DS1B20 sensor

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Fig. 4: Interfacing DS18B20with Arduino

with 12-bit readings the factory default state. This equates to a temperature resolution of 0.5C, 0.25C, 0.125C, or 0.0625C.
pH Sensor
pH sensor is made up of pH electrode and a pH meter. The analog pH meter, specially designed for Arduino controllers and has
built-in simple, convenient and practical connection and features.

Fig. 5:

It has an LED which works as the Power Indicator.

A BNC connector and PH2.0 sensor interface.
To use it, just connect the pH sensor with BNC connector, and plug the PH2.0 interface into the analog input port of any Arduino
controller.
It gives a voltage reading for every corresponding pH value. The ADC of the Arduino takes in input as analog and gives the
output in digital form
Pressure sensor DSSPD015Bhybrid
The hybrid series MEMS made piezo resistive pressure sensors provides a convenient way to use Surface mount technology with
a flexible way of air connection. Due to the production process these sensors are ideal for high volume applications and automated
assy. Two kind of air connections are available, a cap with hole and a cap using 1/8 tube connection.

Fig. 6:

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Electrical Specifications

Circuit Connection Of Pressure Sensor.

Fig. 7:

III. ROBOTS NAVIGATION MODULE

Fig. 8:

Servo Motors
A servomotor is a rotary actuator or linear actuator that allows for precise control of angular or linear position, velocity and
acceleration.
It is used as a rudder to control the direction of the Aquabot.

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Specification of the servo motor used Modulation: Anaog.

Torque: 4.8V: 25.0 Oz-in
Speed: 4.8V:0.12 sec/60
Servo motor is used as a rudder
Brushless Dc Motor
Brushless DC electric motor (BLDC motors, BL motors) also known as electronically commutated motors (ECMs, EC motors)
are synchronous motors that are powered by a DC electric source via an integrated inverter/switching power supply, which
produces an AC electric signal to drive the motor.
It is used for depth control and forward movement of Aquabot.
Specification of the brushless dc motor used Voltage: 7.2-12 v
RPM/V(Kv): 1200
At 10v rpm is approximately 12,000
Electronic Speed Controller

Fig. 9:

An electronic speed control or ESC is an electronic circuit with the purpose to vary an electric motors speed, its direction and
possibly also to act as a dynamic range.
ESCs are often used for brushless motors essentially providing an electronically generated three-phase electric power low
voltage source of energy for the motor.
IV. CONCLUSION
As things stand, underwater exploration is a relatively new and expensive field. We aim to change that and make it easily accessible
to individuals. This report outlines the fundamentals of the prototype of a marine ROV. The operation of the arduino and its
programming has been studied so far. Interfacing the temperature sensor, brushless dc motor and the servo motor with the arduino
has been successfully implemented.
REFERENCES
[1]
[2]
[3]
[4]

Vitaly Bokser, Carl Oberg, Gaurav S. Sukhatme, and Aristides Requicha, A SMALL SUBMARINE ROBOT FOR EXPERIMENTS IN UNDERWATER
SENSOR NETWORKS,
Govindarajan.R , Arulselvi.S , Thamarai.P, Underwater Robot Control Systems, 1 April 2013, International Journal of Scientific Engineering and Technology
Yufeng Wei, Fang Liu, Fei Hu, Fanrang Kong, The structure design of the mini underwater robot, School of Engineering Science, University of Science and
Technology of China
HOWARD H.WANG,STEPHEN M. ROCK, The Design and Development of an Intelligent Underwater Robot, Aerospace Robotics Laboratory Department
of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Stanford University Stanford

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