RI: Small: Collaborative Research: Distributed Heterogeneous Ocean Robots for Detecting and Monitoring Oil Plumes

这一合作项目解决了最近“深水地平线”事件所突出强调的对海洋观测技术的需要。拟议的项目研究异构海洋机器人（包括波浪滑翔机，无人水面舰艇和自主水下航行器），以检测和监测油羽的传播。具体目标包括：1）使用基于偏微分方程（PDE）的方法开发分布式多机器人协作部署算法，该算法与石油运输的海洋学模型相匹配，2）开发新的波浪滑翔机平台的真实动力学模型以并入协作控制中，和3）通过在使用海洋网络的沿海实验中进行模拟和实验演示，评估创新算法的潜在优势更广泛的影响：拟议的项目将为集体感知提供新的算法和软件支持，并解决更好地感知水下碳氢化合物羽流的紧迫现实需求。该提案中开发的技术将对水下勘探产生长期影响，例如海洋调查和深水能源生产。这些结果还可能有益于其他具有潜在扩散和平流过程的环境监测任务，如天气事件跟踪和气候预测。计划中的工作将通过以机器人为中心的本科和研究生教育，机器人竞赛，短期课程和研讨会开发以及K-12教育的推广将研究项目与教育活动相结合。该项目与史蒂文斯工程和科学教育创新中心合作，将展示由NSF授予的史蒂文斯构建IT水下机器人扩展STEM学习和劳动力发展项目课程中的拟议研究。

This collaborative project addresses the need for ocean observational techniques which was highlighted by the recent Deepwater Horizon incident. The proposed project investigates heterogeneous ocean robots (including wave gliders, unmanned surface vessels, and autonomous underwater vehicles) to detect and monitor the propagation of oil plumes. Specific objectives include: 1) the development of a distributed multi-robot cooperative deployment algorithm using partial differential equation (PDE) based methods that match the oceanographic model of oil transport, 2) the development of authentic dynamic model of the new wave glider platform to incorporate in the cooperative control, and 3) assessing the potential advantages of innovative algorithms through simulations and experimental demonstration in a coastal experiment using a network of ocean robot platforms.Broader Impacts: The proposed project will provide novel algorithmic and software support for collective sensing, and address a pressing real-world need for better sensing of underwater hydrocarbon plumes. The techniques developed in the proposal will have long-term impacts in underwater exploration such as oceanographic survey and energy production in deep water. The results may also potentially benefit other environmental monitoring tasks with underlying diffusion and advection processes, such as weather event tracking and climate prediction. The planned work will integrate research projects with education activities through robot-centric undergraduate and graduate education, robotics competition, short course and workshop development, and outreach to K-12 education. Partnering with the Stevens' Center for Innovation in Engineering and Science Education, the project will showcase the proposed research in the curriculum of the Stevens Build IT Underwater Robotics Scale-Up for STEM Learning and Workforce Development Project awarded by NSF.