Power saving system for underwater vehicles

Abstract

A power saving system for underwater vehicles includes a control system, a power unit and a battery. The control system controls the power unit to drive the underwater vehicle, and generates an output driving value. The control system includes a calculation unit, a three-axis accelerometer and gyro and an underwater vehicle weight value. The calculation unit creates a correspondent acceleration value by the output driving value and the underwater vehicle weight value. The three-axis accelerometer and gyro detects the acceleration of the underwater vehicle by every less than 0.5 second interval, and generates an acceleration value. The control system compares the correspondent acceleration value and the acceleration value to control the output driving value so as to save battery power and elongate the range of travelling of the underwater vehicles.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION1. Fields of the Invention[0001]The present invention relates to an underwater vehicle, and more particularly, to a power saving system for an underwater vehicle so as to control the output of the driving unit according to resistance.2. Descriptions of Related Art[0002]The underwater vehicles are used widely for more and more tasks with roles and missions constantly evolving. For example, the oil and gas industry uses underwater vehicles to make detailed maps of the seafloor before they start building subsea infrastructure, pipelines and sub-sea completions can be installed in the most cost effective manner with minimum disruption to the environment. The underwater vehicles may have two types, one of which is autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs), and the other is remotely operated underwater vehicles (ROVs). The AUVs allow the users to conduct precise surveys of areas where traditional bathymetric surveys would be less effective or too costly.[0003]The un...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

The invention is a system that saves power in underwater vehicles by calculating the speed and resistance they encounter, and adjusting the driving unit accordingly. This helps conserve battery power and extend the vehicle's range.

Problems solved by technology

The AUVs allow the users to conduct precise surveys of areas where traditional bathymetric surveys would be less effective or too costly.

The range of the underwater vehicles is limited based on the power from the batteries.

The underwater vehicles spend a lot of time on the travel of forth and back, and in some situations, the underwater vehicles may be brought away the route by strong current.

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