Raya: A Bio-Inspired AUV for Inspection and Intervention of Underwater Structures

This work presents a bio-inspired Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) concept called Raya that enables high manoeuvrability required for close-range inspection and intervention tasks, while fostering endurance for long-range operations by enabling efficient navigation. The AUV has an estimated terminal velocity of 0.82 m/s in an optimal environment, and a capacity to acquire visual data and sonar measurements in all directions. Raya was designed with the potential to incorporate an electric manipulator arm of 6 degrees of freedom (DoF) for free-floating underwater intervention. Smart and biologically inspired principles applied to morphology and a strategic thruster configuration assure that Raya is capable of manoeuvring in all 6 DoFs even when equipped with a manipulator with a 5 kg payload. Extensive experiments were conducted using simulation tools and real-life environments to validate Raya’s requirements and functionalities. The stresses and displacements of the rigid bodies were analysed using finite element analysis (FEA), and an estimation of the terminal forward velocity was achieved using a dynamic model. To assess the accuracy of the perception system, a reconstruction task took place in an indoor pool, resulting in a 3D reconstruction with average length, width, and depth errors below 1. 5%. The deployment of Raya in the ATLANTIS Coastal Testbed and Porto de Leixões allowed the validation of the propulsion system and the gathering of valuable 2D and 3D data, thus proving the suitability of the vehicle for operation and maintenance (O&M) activities of underwater structures.