- 14 Mar
- 2023
Manta Robots: SMTU students were acquainted with the latest developments in bionics and robotics
For more than ten ears, engineers at Northwestern Polytechnic University (Xi'an) have been designing a bionic robot that replicates the shape and movement of the giant stingray, also called the sea devil.
According to one of Cao Yun University developers, scientists have achieved 90% similarity of the robot shape with its natural prototype. The Chinese designers have achieved the equally high indicators in machine's movement: it, like the ramp, can move smoothly forward, sharply upwards and can change direction of moving, just like a stingray. The robot has two types of movement: gravity and wings.
Already, with the help of new technology, studies of the ocean environment are being conducted. The mechanical stingray is capable of diving to depth of over a thousand meters. The size of the robot can be varied, depending on the task it performs.
Recently, the St. Petersburg Marine Technical University also began to study the movement of Manta Stingray to create an underwater drone based on the bionic principles. The mechanism imitating a live stingray has many advantages: noiselessness, camouflage, high autonomy, a convenient form for using echolocators.
During the seminar, Vladimir Ryzhov (Head of Applied Mathematics and Mathematical Modeling Department, SMTU), spoke about the work on using a wave glider as a mobile gateway of an underwater wireless network:
«To transmit a signal in the aquatic environment from the sensor network, we need to create intermediate network elements that will chain the information to the surface. Another challenge is the transition from one environment to another, from water to air. For this reason, we have proposed to use a wave glider, which is a two-medium apparatus. Through the hydroacoustic channel, the sensors transmit information to the underwater part, then the usual cable systems bring it to the surface part, and then the satellite systems send the information to the data processing centre. The receiver can manage this information and make predictions and models».