Work

Numerical Investigation on Hydrodynamic Characteristics of Variable Flexible Tube Underwater Object Suction Robot

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Remotely operated underwater vehicles (ROVs) play a significant role in the domain of underwater robotics, as observed in the field of deep-sea aquaculture. However, conventional stationary suction-tube underwater collection robots often struggle to efficiently collect target organisms located within complex reef environments. To address this limitation, this paper proposes an underwater object suction robot with a variable flexible tube. For vision-based object recognition tasks, stable vehicle motion is essential, as hydrodynamic disturbances can significantly degrade visual accuracy. Therefore, a systematic numerical investigation is conducted into the hydrodynamic characteristics of the ROV under different suction-tube shapes. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations are used to evaluate the resistance acting on the vehicle. The results provide guidance for motion control strategies aimed at reducing disturbance effects and improving the robustness of underwater robotic vision.

Source: Journal of Marine Science and Engineering

DOI: 10.3390/jmse14070624

Authors: Yida Zhu, Fenglei Han, Qing Chang, Wangyuan Zhao, Shuxuan Liang, Jiaqi Yu

Institutions: University of Southampton, Harbin Engineering University

Language: English

Topic: Underwater Vehicles and Communication Systems

Subfield: Ocean Engineering

Field: Engineering

Domain: Physical Sciences

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $3,137

Funder: National Natural Science Foundation of China