A Transverse Bi-Rotor Aerial-Aquatic Robot Based on Coupled Vector Power System

An aerial-aquatic robot integrates single-medium and cross-medium mobility capabilities, enabling the execution of sophisticated tasks in multimedium operational environments, such as ship hull inspection and cross-medium observations. Currently, improvements in underwater mobility capability are hindered due to the challenges introduced by the selection of power systems and control strategies, including the complexity of power systems and low integration of control systems. This article addresses the uncontrollable motion underwater of aerial-aquatic robots utilizing a transverse birotor platform for flight. A novel coupled vector power system concept is proposed and employed to develop an aerial-aquatic robot. This system incorporates a single vector underwater propeller, coupled with the existing vector birotor system of the flight platform, to achieve multimedium motion. The underwater linear motion capability is evaluated based on the test results of various combinations of the coupled vector power system. Furthermore, water-air multimedium motion experiments are conducted in an outdoor river to validate the superior motion control performance of the coupled configuration. These findings provide new insights for enhancing the multimedium motion capabilities of aerial-aquatic robots.