ROBOTS: What is “Cyro – the Robotic Jellyfish”?

15 May 2014

            Funded by the United States Navy, Virginia Tech has developed a “life-like, autonomous” underwater robot.  “Cyro the Jellyfish” is about the size of a human being with a weight of 170 pounds and a length of 5 feet 7 inches.

            Cyro has a waterproof shell attached to eight mechanical arms.  A sheet of pliable silicone is stretched over both the shell and arms.  The sheet flexes as the arms move giving the moving robot the distinct appearance, and apparent movement, of a jellyfish.
 

            The name “Cyro” is a combination of the first two letters of the species on which this robot’s design is based, Cyanea capillata, plus the first two letters of the word “robot.”   Cy + ro = Cyro.

            In 2012, the first prototype, RoboJelly, was developed.  About the size of man’s hand, this smaller version had about the same dimensions as an actual jellyfish.  But why model an Unmanned Underwater Vehicle, UUV, after a Jellyfish? 

            Biomimicry.

            Biomimicry describes any technology imitating (copied from) nature.  In other words, if you want a drone that works in a particular way, and the best example of such performance is a biological organism, imitation is the shortest distance to the goal.

            And the selection of a jellyfish as a model for this UUV was no accident.  The actual jellyfish, as an organism, seems “designed” to operate with a low metabolic rate allowing it function with remarkably low energy consumption.  Although jellyfish all share certain common traits of physical structure, these creatures come in many different shapes, sizes and colors.  This variety provides a wide selection of “models” for possible design imitation.

            But the desirable qualities of the jellyfish, for technological imitation, go farther than its fuel economy and assortment of “body styles.”  Jellyfish successfully live and function in all the major oceans of the world.  They flourish in warm tropical waters and as well as the colder waters of the arctic.  We’re most familiar with the coastal species, which are, in fact, the most numerous.  But a number of jellyfish species live (and live well) at depths of over four miles beneath the surface of the ocean.

            Virginia Tech Professor of Mechanical Engineering Shashank Priya heads the robotic jellyfish project.  Development is focusing on power consumption with the goal of extending Cyro’s operating time from hours to months. Alex Villanueva, a doctoral student in mechanical engineering, working under Priya, explained that the larger payload capacity will also allow more operating time and longer range. 

            Cyro is Virginia Tech’s contribution under a $5,000,000 grant from the U.S. Naval Undersea Warfare Center of the Office of Naval Research.  The grant is shared with UCLA, Stanford University, Providence College, and the University of Texas. The Navy’s ultimate goal is to develop “self-powering, autonomous machines,” which will operate in the oceans for purposes of surveillance, monitoring ocean currents, mapping the ocean floors and studying undersea life.

Thursday 15 May 2014

GCLM5444HOxenia

[Author’s Note: (trivia) Cyro is patterned after a jellyfish species commonly called the “lions mane.”  This extremely large jellyfish was featured in an original Sherlock Holmes short story, The Adventure of the Lion’s Mane.  But the story exaggerates the toxicity of this species’ sting, which is no more dangerous than the sting of the jellyfish often encountered in coastal waters.]

Virginia Tech researchers unveil large robotic jellyfish that one day could patrol oceans

Robotic jellyfish named Cyro could one day work for the Navy

Robotic Jellyfish ‘Cyro’ Could Work for Navy, Come After You

ROBOTS: Hydra – The Undersea Drone with Drones of its Own

1 May 2014

 

            Cut one head off and two more grow back?  It’s from Greek mythology.  The creature’s name was Hydra.  DARPA has given the same name to a planned unmanned vehicle.  This underwater drone would do little in terms of actual “engagement.”  Instead, it would be “stocked” with drones of every imaginable kind.  Traveling to various hot spots, the Hydra would deploy the numbers and kinds of drones needed to do the job – whatever that job might be.

            The Hydra has been called an underwater version of an aircraft carrier.  Not designed so much to engage in combat or reconnaissance, the Hydra, like the aircraft carrier, is intended to transport items designed for these very purposes.  But, unlike the aircraft carrier, the Hydra is both unmanned and a “submarine” vehicle – tagged with the acronym, UUV, unmanned underwater vehicle.

See: Photos of the Day: The Hydra underwater drone

            A DARPA sponsored presentation of the project was made on “Proposer’s Day” at John’s Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory.   The Hydra program’s goal was described as the development of an “unmanned air and undersea system” to deliver “unmanned air and underwater vehicles into operational environments.”

            When you think about it, you realize that building the Hydra also requires building a fleet of drones of every variety with extremely diverse functions.  Just to fill-in a few details, the Hydra doesn’t just carry its payload as it travels underwater, its drones are actually deployed underwater.  Some of the deployed drones could perform their functions underwater.  Others could rise to the surface and continue to operate as unmanned surface vehicles.  Still others could rise to the surface and take off into the air -- becoming airborne.  [view image]

            Although the Hydra is unmanned, this doesn’t mean that it couldn’t be equipped with deployable drones that could, themselves, transport human beings in emergencies. DARPA engineers are considering the design of a “submersible” “capsule” for the transportation of troops.  Again, the troops wouldn’t be passengers in the Hydra.  Rather, the Hydra would deploy a drone able to pick up troops at one location and take them to another location.  The resulting stealth delivery would assist in rescue operations as well as the surgical strike type of military operation. 

            The Hydra’s program manager, Scott Littlefield, has pointed out the economic savings resulting from the use of unmanned technology in the development of underwater defense strategies.  Littlefield sees these unmanned technologies as providing a way to expand our defense capabilities even with tightening budgets. 

DARPA goes deep: New Hydra project to see underwater drones deploying drones

            Clearly, drone technology would be much cheaper to deploy and operate than similar manned technologies.  Historically, submarines, for example, costly, inflexible (slow) in response compared to this proposed drone technology.  Submarines have also presented unavoidable dangers to human crews as well as a good deal of discomfort.

Hydra Program [view video]

            The sheer extent of underwater coverage promised by the development of the Hydra is unprecedented.  The hydra program would maintain a presence beneath all the relatively shallow waters of not only the seas, but also the world’s river systems. But what about the deep seas . . . ?

            Not to worry.

            Complementing the UVV’s of the Hydra program would be the “pods” and “modules” of the UFP program.  The UFP (upward falling payloads) program would place pods containing supply modules and drones on the deep sea floors.  Because of the extremely depth (more than two and a half miles), the pods would quite difficult to access.  On the one hand, the depth provides the perfect stealth.  On the other hand, the access difficulties make it necessary that the pods be designed and stocked to last years at a time. 

UFP [view image]

            Like the Hydra, the UFP pods would be filled with supply modules and drones that could be delivered to the ocean’s surface when needed.  And the delivery is the easiest part of the system.  The modules and drones would be buoyant, lighter than water.  Upon release, with water pressure at the deep sea floor, the drones and/or modules don’t just float, but seem to rush to the surface so quickly that it looks like . . . “falling upward.” Hence, “upward falling payloads.”

ROBOTS: Upward Falling? A New Generation of Undersea Drones

            The Hydra and UFP programs are part of a new wave of logistically oriented drone systems.  The new emphasis can be seen with another DARPA program to compliment the familiar aerial combat drone. DARPA, together with Lockheed Martin, is working to develop not only unmanned aircraft, but unmanned land vehicles to supply soldiers in combat. 

Thursday 1 May 2014

GCLM5444HOxenia

DARPA: Hydra Program

DARPA Hydra, here comes the mothership designed to deploy drones

What SNL did for the land shark, Lockheed Martin may be doing for the “land drone.”  See: Army, Lockheed to test drones-only mission, by air and land