Autonomous Underwater Vehicle

Team SONIA would like to thank Brüel & Kjær for the major donation they provided us. With this donation, we now have a spare hydrophone and will be able to repaire our passive sonar system if broken.

For the first time this week, the team had the opportunity to sleep a little longer than usual because the first and only test of the day had been scheduled in advance and was set to 9:40 am.

The team membres talking about the strategy for the final

During that test, sequences of obstacles were tested. Lots of clouds in the sky resulted in problems with the vision. Some adjustments were made and then the submarine went to the pinger. However, the pinger frequency was too low, making useless the previously made adjustments for this obstacle.

Before the final round, the team made the necessary modifications and answered numerous questions of visitors.

The team in its way to the final

Finally comes the final round. The vehicle quickly moves through the gate and then navigates to the buoys. This obstacle was correctly and fastly completed. At this point, the team was then assured of a podium, because the teams before didn't do as much obstacles and only two other teams remained.

The vehicle then went to the Cesar obstacle. Unfortunately, the submarine wasn't able to find the obstacle and timed out. The next obstacle was the bins. The vehicle successfully dropped one dropper inside the correct bin and one inside an incorrect bin, awarding points for one correct marker and one incorrect marker.

Then, the vehicle navigated to the pinger obstacle. Unfortunately, the frequency of the pinger and the frequency of the thrusters were very similar, causing the vehicle to think it had found the obstacle and surface, thus ending our final round.

The last two teams completed really good runs. University of Florida encountered mechanical problems near the end of their run making it impossible to complete the end of the obstacle course. None the less, their run was still good for a 2nd place. Cornell, who completed the last run of the day, almost made a perfect round. They touched every obstacle of the course but were not able to get the maximum of points on every of them. With such an impressive run they were clearly the winner of this year's competition.

Overall, the team is very happy of this year's 3rd place. Congratulation to University of Florida for their 2nd place and to Cornell University for their 1st place. We hope to see you all next year!!

The team with Cornell and University of Florida

The finals were two days ago, we are very happy of our performance. We finished in 3rd position behind Cornell University and University of Florida who got 1st and 2nd position.

A complete summary of the final will be posted soon. Today, we need to pack our equipment in order to travel back to Montreal.

This morning, the team arrived first on site. However, the chinese team had their qualification run at 8 o'clock, they needed an early test spot. The team gladly exchanged place with them. During the test, the buoys obstacle was tested to confirm that the problems encountered yesterday wouldn't happen again. The obstacle was correctly executed.

Today again, numerous visitors and little adjustments that had to be done on the vehicle filled the team member's schedule until the second test around noon.

Marc-André explaining our vehicle to visiters

For the second test, the pinger obstacle was tested not once, but twice. The first try, some problem with communication between the hydrophones and the mission system occurred. Some adjustments were made on the spot and the vehicle completed the task before the time was up.

Three long hours separated the second test with the second and final qualification run. The team worked hard and made sure everything was set up for the qualification run.

The team's turn finally comes. The submarine is deployed and placed in position, the diver pushes in the mission switch and the mission starts. After passing the gate, the vehicle reaches the buoys. It was a great relief to when the submarine finally moved and knocked the green buoy. The vehicle then knocked the red one and moved on to the next obstacle.

The submarine just before the qualification run

While trying to align the next obstacle the vehicle hit the red one again and then strafed into the green one. The order that will be kept by the judges will be red and then green, which is the opposite of what it was supposed to be. The submarine then passed through the obstacle course and prepared for the Cesar obstacle.

Once at destination, the two torpedoes were fired into the big circle on the same side with success. The vehicle then navigated to the bins obstacle. The two markers were dropped right on the side of the target, still awarding points. Finally the vehicle started to navigate to the last obstacle, the pinger obstacle.

Unfortunately, an error in the pinger's mission caused the submarine to go straight for the wall. The diver had to press the kill switch to avoid a collision. The team then decided to end the qualification run. Fortunately, the obstacles successfully executed awarded enough point to qualify for the final round.

The team during the semi-final run

Since another team wasn't ready for their test, the team had the opportunity to test the pinger obstacle. Some problems were detected, but the software team will work hard to make sure everything is ready for the tomorrow’s final at 3pm.

For the first time this week, the team wasn't the first to arrive on site, but the second. However it didn't prevent the team from getting the first spot in the water. The Laurel obstacle was the first to be tested to verify the parameters were well adjusted for the semi-finals. Once the vehicle was in the water and in position, the Laurel mission was correctly performed.

Fog covering Transdec

After the first test, an issue was found with the dropping mechanism. Markers were not able to hold in place properly. The magnetic pull was not strong enough. The team quickly found the problem. The acrylic tube used on the vehicle is not the same thickness everywhere. Worst, the thickest part was exactly where the markers were positioned. In order to fix it, the team had to partially disassemble the main hull and rotated the tube. Finally handmade holders were glued in position. The vehicle was quickly assembled and a leak test was successfully completed. The job was done under 1 hour and a half, giving enough time to prepare for the next test.

Kevin, Marc-André and Simon S fixing the dropping mechanism

Following the test, V.I.P.s including San Diego's mayor visited the competition site. Like yesterday, numerous questions and presentations of the vehicle made sure everyone was busy.

The second test was performed at noon and the goal was to test the chaining of certain obstacles. The test was a success since the Cesar, the bins and the pinger were correctly executed. To increase the chances of success during the Cesar's mission, the torpedos were tested inside a small pool to see which one was more precise.

A few hours later, we headed to the crane for our first qualification round. The team ready and the vehicle deployed, everything was looking great. Once the first gate passed, the vehicle reached the buoys' zone. Two minutes later, the submarine is still standing before the obstacle and not moving. The vehicle was brought back to the starting point to start over, but an identical situation ensued during the second try. The decision was made to ignore the buoys obstacle and navigate directly to the torpedo obstacles. Sadly, the same situation happened in front of the Cesar obstacle and at that moment, the time was up and the qualification run ended.

To find the problem's causes, the log files saved during the execution had to be analyzed carefully. The causes were finally discovered. Some changes in vision filter parameters were required for the buoys and other adjustments in the mission system were needed to make sure that the vehicle was aligned correctly and at the good distance to be able to detect the obstacles.

At the end of the day, we were able to get a very short test, the pinger mission was tested. Unfortunately, problems with the data received by the hydrophones occurred. As soon as the issues were solved, the time allowed in the pool was already over. A portion of tomorrow's first test will be reserved to the pinger.

Tomorrow is the last semi-final day, the team will attempt to qualify for the final at 3h pm.

Jacques and Patrick, getting ready to deploy the vehicle for the last test of the day