Underwater Sailing Body Posture Control for Power Efficiency
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing underwater sailing body control methods, such as automatic direction setting, do not effectively manage external forces in all directions, leading to increased electric power consumption when maintaining a target position, especially for AUVs where forces are applied in upper-lower directions.
Innovation Solution
An underwater sailing body equipped with a positioning device, posture detecting sensors, and actuators that apply thrust in multiple directions, controlled by a system calculating and adjusting forces to align the hull with external forces, reducing fluid resistance and power consumption.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Stability of the object's composition
If thrusters are driven to hold the hull at the target position against external forces, then the hull position stability is improved, but the electric power consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies dynamic posture adjustment by changing the hull's orientation angle in response to external forces. Instead of maintaining a fixed posture, the hull dynamically adjusts its angle to align with the direction of external forces (waves, currents), allowing the system to exploit natural force directions rather than constantly opposing them with thrusters, thereby reducing power consumption while maintaining position stability
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the operational parameter of hull orientation angle based on external force conditions. By varying this parameter (the angle between the hull's longitudinal axis and the external force direction), the system optimizes the balance between position holding capability and power consumption, allowing thrusters to work more efficiently
2Use of energy by moving object
If the bow is directed in the direction of external force acts, then the electric power consumption is suppressed, but the control does not account for upper-lower direction forces in underwater vehicles
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extends the control from two-dimensional (horizontal plane only) to three-dimensional space by incorporating vertical dimension forces. The control system now considers external forces acting in all three spatial dimensions, allowing the hull to adjust its posture in multiple rotational degrees of freedom, not just yaw angle, thereby adapting to comprehensive multi-directional force environments experienced by underwater vehicles
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The system effectively maintains the hull at a target position while minimizing electric power usage by aligning the hull with external forces, reducing fluid resistance across all directional applications.
Implementation Method 1
an actuator configured to apply thrust to the hull in a front-rear direction of the hull, a left-right direction of the hull, and an upper-lower direction of the hull
Implementation Method 2
when the hull receives an external force by disturbances, such as waves and ocean currents
Data Source
AI summary
An underwater sailing body includes: a positioning device configured to detect positional information of a hull of the underwater sailing body; a posture detecting sensor configured to detect posture information of the hull; an actuator configured to apply thrust to the hull in a front-rear direction of the hull, a left-right direction of the hull, an upper-lower direction of the hull in water to change the position and posture of the hull; and a controller configured to control the actuator. In order to hold a hull at a target position when the hull receives an external force by disturbances, the hull keeps balance by using thrusters with respect to the external force acting on the hull. Specifically, the hull is held at the target position by controlling a thruster configured to generate thrust in a front-rear direction and a thruster configured to generate thrust in a left-right direction.