Control performance of autonomous underwater vehicle "AQUA EXPLORER 1000" for inspection of underwater cables

The paper deals with analysis of control performance of an autonomous underwater vehicle named AQUA EXPLORER 1000 (AE1000) for inspection of underwater telecommunication cables up to 1000 m depth, reviewing results of sea trials in autonomous tracking. The control performance of the cable tracking at 40 m water depth, consisting of descent from the surface, cable searching, cable tracking and ascent to the surface, is discussed based on the measured data. Next, the performance of spiral motion control in a limited area from the mother ship, which is an important operation for the AE1000 not to be lost during descent and ascent, is discussed by showing test results. Finally, the performance of the fuzzy controller for cable tracking control in tidal currents is discussed by use of numerical simulation.<<ETX>>