A hybrid environment for the development of underwater mechatronic systems

This paper proposes a hybrid research environment consists of a virtual underwater-world simulator called MVS (multi-vehicle simulator) and a pair of actual test-bed underwater robots called Twin-Burger I and II. The MVS is able to produce virtual world information in real-time which can be customized for the robots' workspace. In this environment, the robots can interact with the MVS via high speed serial communication link and behave as if they were swimming in the underwater-world even in the case they are deployed in a simple shaped testing-pool. This world which is virtually created using the sensory information of both the real and a virtual world is called "synthetic world". By testing in the synthetic world, the efficiency of underwater systems' development is improved because the software can be developed directly on the embedded computer system and the hardware/software cross-checking can be easily conducted. This paper shows the detailed descriptions and unique characteristics of the proposed research environment and the practical example of the software development for underwater robots.