EP1535654A1 - Fish-shaped underwater navigating body, control system thereof, and aquarium - Google Patents

Fish-shaped underwater navigating body, control system thereof, and aquarium Download PDF

Info

Publication number
EP1535654A1
EP1535654A1 EP02722888A EP02722888A EP1535654A1 EP 1535654 A1 EP1535654 A1 EP 1535654A1 EP 02722888 A EP02722888 A EP 02722888A EP 02722888 A EP02722888 A EP 02722888A EP 1535654 A1 EP1535654 A1 EP 1535654A1
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
fish
section
underwater navigation
type underwater
navigation body
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Withdrawn
Application number
EP02722888A
Other languages
German (de)
French (fr)
Other versions
EP1535654A4 (en
Inventor
Ikuo NAGASAKI Res.& Development Center YAMAMOTO
Yuuzi KOBE Shipyard & Machinery Works TERADA
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd
Original Assignee
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd filed Critical Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd
Publication of EP1535654A1 publication Critical patent/EP1535654A1/en
Publication of EP1535654A4 publication Critical patent/EP1535654A4/en
Withdrawn legal-status Critical Current

Links

Images

Classifications

    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B63—SHIPS OR OTHER WATERBORNE VESSELS; RELATED EQUIPMENT
    • B63H—MARINE PROPULSION OR STEERING
    • B63H1/00—Propulsive elements directly acting on water
    • B63H1/30—Propulsive elements directly acting on water of non-rotary type
    • B63H1/36—Propulsive elements directly acting on water of non-rotary type swinging sideways, e.g. fishtail type
    • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
    • A63H—TOYS, e.g. TOPS, DOLLS, HOOPS OR BUILDING BLOCKS
    • A63H23/00—Toy boats; Floating toys; Other aquatic toy devices
    • A63H23/02—Boats; Sailing boats
    • A63H23/04—Self-propelled boats, ships or submarines
    • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
    • A63H—TOYS, e.g. TOPS, DOLLS, HOOPS OR BUILDING BLOCKS
    • A63H23/00—Toy boats; Floating toys; Other aquatic toy devices
    • A63H23/08—Cartesian or other divers
    • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
    • A63H—TOYS, e.g. TOPS, DOLLS, HOOPS OR BUILDING BLOCKS
    • A63H23/00—Toy boats; Floating toys; Other aquatic toy devices
    • A63H23/10—Other water toys, floating toys, or like buoyant toys
    • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
    • A63H—TOYS, e.g. TOPS, DOLLS, HOOPS OR BUILDING BLOCKS
    • A63H23/00—Toy boats; Floating toys; Other aquatic toy devices
    • A63H23/10—Other water toys, floating toys, or like buoyant toys
    • A63H23/14—Special drives
    • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
    • A63H—TOYS, e.g. TOPS, DOLLS, HOOPS OR BUILDING BLOCKS
    • A63H23/00—Toy boats; Floating toys; Other aquatic toy devices
    • A63H23/10—Other water toys, floating toys, or like buoyant toys
    • A63H23/16—Aquatic toy installations; Harbour arrangements
    • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
    • A63H—TOYS, e.g. TOPS, DOLLS, HOOPS OR BUILDING BLOCKS
    • A63H30/00—Remote-control arrangements specially adapted for toys, e.g. for toy vehicles
    • A63H30/02—Electrical arrangements
    • A63H30/04—Electrical arrangements using wireless transmission
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B63—SHIPS OR OTHER WATERBORNE VESSELS; RELATED EQUIPMENT
    • B63G—OFFENSIVE OR DEFENSIVE ARRANGEMENTS ON VESSELS; MINE-LAYING; MINE-SWEEPING; SUBMARINES; AIRCRAFT CARRIERS
    • B63G8/00—Underwater vessels, e.g. submarines; Equipment specially adapted therefor
    • B63G8/001—Underwater vessels adapted for special purposes, e.g. unmanned underwater vessels; Equipment specially adapted therefor, e.g. docking stations
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B63—SHIPS OR OTHER WATERBORNE VESSELS; RELATED EQUIPMENT
    • B63G—OFFENSIVE OR DEFENSIVE ARRANGEMENTS ON VESSELS; MINE-LAYING; MINE-SWEEPING; SUBMARINES; AIRCRAFT CARRIERS
    • B63G8/00—Underwater vessels, e.g. submarines; Equipment specially adapted therefor
    • B63G8/14—Control of attitude or depth
    • B63G8/20—Steering equipment

Definitions

  • the present invention is relates to a fish-type underwater navigation body, a control system of the fish-type underwater navigation body, and an aquarium to exhibit a fish-type underwater navigation body.
  • a first conventional example of an underwater navigation body is known in Japan Laid Open Patent Application (JP-A-Heisei 11-152085), in which a wing is vibrated like the fin of a fish for propulsion and steering.
  • the first conventional example of the underwater navigation body is composed of wing portions 201a and 201b, as shown in Fig. 1.
  • the wing portions 201a and 201b are connected in series.
  • the wing portions 201a and 201b are turned around rotation axes 204 and 205, respectively.
  • the vibration of the wing portions 201a and 201b is controlled in cooperation to each other, and the wing portions 201a and 201b operate flexibly like a caudal fin of the fish as a whole.
  • the first conventional example of the underwater navigation body acquires propulsion. Also, the vibration of the wing portions 201a and 201b is controlled in the cooperation to each other and the steering is carried out.
  • the first conventional example of the underwater navigation body contains a single tank 207. The up and down control of the underwater navigation body is carried out by water filling and drainage to the tank 207.
  • a second conventional example of the underwater navigation body is known in the above-mentioned reference.
  • the second conventional example of the underwater navigation body is composed of a plurality of vibration wings 121 on the both edges of a main unit 222, as shown in Fig. 2.
  • the vibration wings 221 are driven by a first actuator 224 to rotate around a vertical axis 225.
  • the vibration wings 221 are driven by a second actuator 223 to turn around an axis 226.
  • an angle is adjusted.
  • the propulsion and steering are carried out by the plurality of vibration wings 221. Either of the vibration wings 221 contributes both of the propulsion and the steering.
  • One of the application fields of such an underwater navigation body includes a fish robot (artificial fish). A lot of people expect new amusement facilities for their leisure. Such a fish robot has a high entertainment and a high needs as the new amusement facilities.
  • the amusement facilities in which the plurality of fish robots swim while imitating ecology in actual undersea do not exist conventionally, and the amusement facilities can be expected in collection of many visitors. Especially, the visitor collecting is effected in the amusement facilities where an ancient fish which does not exist like coelacanth swims.
  • an object of the present invention is to provide a fish-type underwater navigation body like a fish robot imitating a fish having a plurality of fins such as pectoral fins, pelvic fins and a caudal fin.
  • Another object of the present invention is to provide a fish-type underwater navigation body like a fish robot which is stable in the attitude while swimming to generate propulsion.
  • Another object of the present invention is to provide a fish-type underwater navigation body like a fish robot which can be controlled externally.
  • Another object of the present invention is to provide a fish-type underwater navigation body control system which controls a fish-type underwater navigation body like a fish robot externally.
  • Another object of the present invention is to realize an aquarium in which a fish-type underwater navigation body like a fish robot swims, and which is an amusement facilities having a high visitor collecting effect.
  • a fish-type underwater navigation body includes a caudal turning section provided for a caudal section of a main unit, a pair of first side turning sections provided in front lower sections of the main unit, and a pair of second side turning sections provided in side lower sections between a center section and the caudal section in the main unit.
  • the fish-type underwater navigation body generates propulsion by turning the caudal turning section.
  • the pair of first side turning sections, the pair of second side turning sections and the caudal turning section function for attitude control of the fish-type underwater navigation body.
  • the fish-type underwater navigation body may further include a dorsal turning section provided for an upper section between the center section and the caudal section in the main unit and functions for attitude control of the fish-type underwater navigation body.
  • the fish-type underwater navigation body may further include another caudal turning section provided in the lower section between the center section and the caudal section in the main unit and functions for attitude control of the fish-type underwater navigation body.
  • the caudal turning section of the fish-type underwater navigation body may include a first caudal turning section, and a second caudal turning section connected with the first caudal turning section.
  • the first caudal turning section turns in response to a turning operation of the second caudal turning section so as to realize an operation similar to a fish. It is desirable that the turning frequency of the caudal turning section is determined based on a speed of the fish-type underwater navigation body and a width of the fish-type underwater navigation body in a direction perpendicular to a direction of movement of the fish-type underwater navigation body.
  • the fish-type underwater navigation body may further include a flotage tank section, and movement of the fish-type underwater navigation body upwardly and downwardly is controlled based on a quantity of water in the flotage tank section.
  • the flotage tank section includes a front flotage tank section and a rear flotage tank section.
  • the rear flotage tank section includes a pair of flotage tank sections.
  • the fish-type underwater navigation body may further include a driving section which drives the caudal turning section, the pair of first side turning sections and the pair of second side turning sections independently, a receiving section which receives a radio wave instruction signal propagated in underwater, and a control section which controls the driving section based on the radio wave instruction signal.
  • a frequency of the radio wave instruction signal is equal to or less than 100 MHz, in consideration of the attenuation of the radio wave instruction signal.
  • the fish-type underwater navigation body further includes a transmitting section which replies a content of the radio wave instruction signal when the radio wave instruction signal is received. Thus, it is possible to determine whether the instruction reached right.
  • a fish-type underwater navigation body control system in another aspect of the present invention, includes the above fish-type underwater navigation body, and a control unit which transmits a radio wave instruction signal to the fish-type underwater navigation body through underwater.
  • the fish-type underwater navigation body further includes a driving section which drives the pair of first side turning sections, the a pair of second side turning sections and the caudal turning section independently, a receiving section which receives the radio wave instruction signal propagated in the underwater, and a drive control unit which controls the driving section based on the radio wave instruction signal.
  • the frequency of the radio wave instruction signal is equal to or less than 100 MHz.
  • control unit may further include an operation unit, and a transmitting section which outputs the radio wave instruction signal in the underwater based on an operation of the operation unit.
  • the fish-type underwater navigation body may include a supersonic transmission section.
  • the fish-type underwater navigation body control system further includes a position detecting section which detects the position of the fish-type underwater navigation body based on supersonic signals outputted from the supersonic transmission sections of the plurality of fish-type underwater navigation bodies.
  • the control unit outputs the radio wave instruction signal to one of the plurality of fish-type underwater navigation bodies for avoidance of collision with another of the plurality of fish-type underwater navigation bodies based on the position detected by the position detecting section.
  • movement of one of the plurality of fish-type underwater navigation bodies is desirably determined based on the radio wave instruction signal generated based on the position detected by the position detecting section, for prevention of collision.
  • an aquarium in another aspect of the present invention, includes a water tank and at least one of the fish-type underwater navigation bodies.
  • the fish-type underwater navigation body swims in the water tank.
  • each of the plurality of fish-type underwater navigation bodies swim in the water tank, and each of the plurality of fish-type underwater navigation bodies move along closed loops, respectively. Also, each of the plurality of fish-type underwater navigation bodies sinks and floats periodically in a gravity direction.
  • the aquarium may further include a control unit which transmits a radio wave instruction signal to the fish-type underwater navigation body through underwater.
  • the fish-type underwater navigation body includes a driving section which drives the pair of first side turning sections, the pair of second side turning sections and the caudal turning section independently; a receiving section which receives the radio wave instruction signal propagated in the underwater; and a drive control unit which controls the driving section based on the radio wave instruction signal.
  • the control unit further includes an operation section; and a transmitting section which outputs the radio wave instruction signal into the underwater based on an operation of the operation section.
  • FIG. 3 shows a fish robot and a control system according to the first embodiment of the present invention.
  • a fish robot 1 in a water tank 2 is controlled by a manual control system 3 or an automatic control system 4.
  • a switch 5 provided for the manual control system 3.
  • An antenna 6 is provided for the manual control system 3 to transmit control radio wave 7 to the fish robot 1.
  • the control radio wave 7 propagates through water in the water tank 2 and reaches the fish robot 1.
  • the fish robot 1 operates in response to the control radio wave 7.
  • the fish robot 1 sends echo radio wave 8.
  • the echo radio wave 8 contains data transmitted by the control radio wave 7, and is used to check whether the control radio wave 7 is normally transmitted.
  • the antenna 6 receives the echo radio wave 8.
  • Fig. 4A and 4B show the structure of the fish robot 1.
  • the fish robot 1 imitates the form of a coelacanth.
  • the fish robot 1 has many fins, as coelacanth having many fins.
  • Fig. 4A is a plan view of the outward appearance of the fish robot 1
  • Fig. 4B is a side view of the outward appearance of the fish robot 1.
  • the fish robot 1 is composed of a fish robot main unit 11.
  • Two pectoral fins 12 1 and 12 2, two pelvic fins 13 1 and 13 2 , a first dorsal fin 14, a second dorsal fin 15, a first caudal fin 16 are connected with the fish robot main unit 11.
  • a second caudal fin 17 is connected with a caudal portion of the fish robot main unit 11.
  • a caudal fin 18 is connected with the second caudal fin 17.
  • Each of the pectoral fins 12 1 and 12 2 , the pelvic fins 13 1 and 13 2 , the first dorsal fin 14, the second dorsal fin 15, the first caudal fin 16, the second caudal fin 17 and the caudal fin 18 is formed of a metal plate covered by a soft plastic film.
  • Fig. 5A is a plan view showing the internal structure of the fish robot 1.
  • the pectoral fins 12 1 and 12 2 are turnably connected with rotation axes 19 1 and 19 2 , respectively.
  • the pectoral fin 12 1 is driven by a motor 20 1 to vibrate (or turn) around the rotation axis 19 1 as shown by the arrow 21 1 .
  • the pectoral fin 12 2 is driven by a motor 20 2 to vibrate around the rotation axis 19 2 , as shown by the arrow 21 2 .
  • the pelvic fins 13 1 and 13 2 are also turnably connected with rotation axes (not illustrated), respectively.
  • the pelvic fins 13 1 and 13 2 are driven by motors 20 3 and 20 4 shown in Fig. 5B, respectively.
  • the pelvic fins 13 1 and 13 2 are vibrated as shown by the arrows 22 1 and 22 2 in Fig. 5A, respectively.
  • the second dorsal fin 15 and the first caudal fin 16 are turnably connected with rotation axes (not shown), respectively, in the same way.
  • the second dorsal fin 15 and the first caudal fin 16 are driven by motors 20 5 and 20 6 shown in Fig. 5B, as shown by the arrows 23 and 24, respectively.
  • the first dorsal fin 14 is fixed.
  • the first dorsal fin 14 makes the posture of the fish robot 1 stable.
  • the second caudal fin 17 contains a vibration fin 17 1 and a vibration fin 17 2 .
  • One end of the vibration fin 17 1 is turnably connected with a rotation axis 25, as shown in Fig. 5A.
  • the vibration fin 17 1 is driven by a motor 20 7 to vibrate around rotation axis 25 as shown by the arrow 26.
  • the other end of the vibration fin 17 1 is connected with a rotation axis 27.
  • One end of the vibration wing 17 2 is turnably connected with the rotation axis 27.
  • the vibration fin 17 2 vibrates around the rotation axis 27 as shown by the arrow 26.
  • the phase of the vibration of the vibration fin 17 1 and the phase of the vibration of the vibration fin 17 2 are shifted from each other and the vibration fin 17 2 operates in response to the operation of the vibration fin 17 1 . That is, the vibration fin 17 1 and the vibration fin 17 2 vibrate flexibly just like actual coelacanth.
  • the constant S is set based on the movement and shape of an actual fish.
  • the caudal fin 18 is connected with the second caudal fin 17.
  • the caudal fin 18 turns around the rotation axis (not shown).
  • the caudal fin 18 vibrates around the rotation axis (not shown) as shown by the arrow 26.
  • the propulsion of the fish robot 1 is substantially generated only by the second caudal fin 17.
  • the above-mentioned pectoral fins 12 1 and 12 2 , pelvic fin 13 1 and 13 2 , second dorsal fin 15, first caudal fin 16 and caudal fin 18 do not generate the propulsion of the fish robot 1 substantially.
  • the posture of the fish robot 1 is controlled by all of the pectoral fins 12 1 and 12 2 , the pelvic fins 13 1 and 13 2 , the second dorsal fins 15, the first caudal fins 16, the second caudal fin 17 and the caudal fins 18. In this way, the behavior of the fish robot when the propulsion is generated and the posture is controlled is same as the actual coelacanth, resulting in the improvement of reality of the fish robot 1.
  • each of the pectoral fins 12 1 and 12 2 , the pelvic fins 13 1 and 13 2 , the second dorsal fin 15, and the first caudal fin 16, and the caudal fin 18 vibrates around only one rotation axis, and the number of degrees of freedom is single.
  • the pectoral fins 12 1 and 12 2 , the pelvic fins 13 1 and 13 2 , the second dorsal fin 15, the first caudal fin 16 and the caudal fin 18 are driven by the motors, respectively.
  • the pectoral fins 12 1 and 12 2 , the pelvic fins 13 1 and 13 2 , the second dorsal fin 15, the first caudal fin 16 and the caudal fin 18 which are used only for the control of the posture of the fish robot 1 do not have to do always a complicated movement. Therefore, the number of degrees of freedom in each of the pectoral fins 12 1 and 12 2 , the pelvic fins 13 1 and 13 2, the second dorsal fin 15, the first caudal fin 16 and the caudal fin 18 is made single and a driving mechanical section can be made small in size.
  • the fish robot 1 contains pumps 28 1 and 28 2 and tanks 29 1 and 29 2 as shown in Fig. 5B.
  • the tank 29 1 is situated on the head of the fish robot 1.
  • the tank 29 2 contains two portions which are located to sandwich the above-mentioned motors 20 3 to 20 8 .
  • the pumps 28 1 and 28 2 injects and drains water into and from the tanks 29 1 and 29 2 .
  • a position of the fish robot 1 in a gravity direction is controlled based on the quantity of water inside the tanks.
  • the fish robot 1 sinks and floats into and from the gravity direction by injecting and draining water into and from the tanks 29 1 and 29 2 .
  • the posture of the fish robot 1 is controlled. In this way, the provision of the plurality of the tanks 29 1 and 29 2 facilitates the control of the posture of the fish robot 1.
  • the fish robot 1 contains a battery cell 31 as a power section (Fig. 5B).
  • the battery cell 31 supplies the whole fish robot 1 with the power supply voltage.
  • Fig. 6 shows the control system for instructing the operation of the fish robot 1.
  • the fish robot 1 further contains a transmitting and receiving section 30.
  • the transmitting and receiving section 30 receives the control radio wave 7 for instructing the operation of the fish robot 1.
  • the control radio wave 7 contains a control process quantity of each of the motors 20 1 to 20 8 and the pumps 28 1 and 28 2 .
  • the motors 20 1 to 20 8 and the pumps 28 1 and 28 2 operate based on the control radio wave 7.
  • the frequency, phase and amplitude of the vibration of each of the above-mentioned pectoral fins 12 1 and 12 2, pelvic fins 13 1 and 13 2 , second dorsal fin 15, first caudal fin 16, second caudal fin 17 and caudal fin 18 are controlled based on the control radio wave 7.
  • the frequency, phase and amplitude of vibration of the pectoral fins 12 1 and 12 2 , pelvic fins 13 1 and 13 2 , second dorsal fin 15, first caudal fin 16, first vibration fin 17 1 and second vibration fin 17 2 of the second caudal fin 17, and caudal fin 18 are determined for the fish robot 1 to move in a desired direction at a desired speed.
  • "Propulsion System with Flexible/Rigid Oscillating Fin" (IEEE Journal of Oceanic Engineering vol. 20, No. 1, (1995), pp. 23-30) or a neural network described in Japanese Patent No. 3117310 may be used for the determination.
  • the pectoral fins 12 1 and 12 2 , the pelvic fins 13 1 and 13 2 , the second dorsal fin 15, the first caudal fin 16, the second caudal fin 17 and the caudal fin 18 are controlled by the control system 5, and move flexibly just as the fins of actual coelacanth. Such a movement delights the person who sees the fish robot 1.
  • the fish robot 1 is possible to move without being connected with a cable. Because the fish robot 1 can move without being connected with the cable, the reality of the fish robot 1 is improved.
  • the transmitting and receiving section 30 sends data of the control process quantity of each of the motors 20 1 to 20 8 and the pumps 28 1 and 28 2 transmitted with the control radio wave 7, as echo radio wave 8.
  • the control radio wave 7 to be propagated in underwater has a possibility to erroneously transfer the control process quantity.
  • the echo radio wave 8 is used to confirm whether the control process quantity to each of the motors 20 1 to 20 8 , and the pumps 28 1 and 28 2 is right transmitted.
  • the operation of the fish robot 1 is controlled by either of the manual control system 3 and the automatic control system 4.
  • the fish robot 1 is controlled is switched by the switch 5.
  • the manual control system 3 is used for the person who operates the fish robot 1 to instruct the operation of the fish robot 1.
  • the control process quantity of each of the pumps 28 1 and 28 2 and the motors 20 1 to 20 8 contained in the fish robot 1 is determined in accordance with the operation of the manual control system 3 by the operation person.
  • the control process quantity is transmitted to the fish robot 1 with the control radio wave 7.
  • the automatic control system 4 When the automatic control system 4 is selected by the switch 5, the automatic control system 4 controls the fish robot 1 in accordance with algorithm defined by the software loaded thereinto.
  • the automatic control system 4 determines the control process quantity of each of the pumps 28 1 and 28 2 and the motors 20 1 to 20 8 contained in the fish robot 1.
  • the control process quantity is transferred to the manual control system 3 by a control signal 9 and then is transmitted to the fish robot 1 with the control radio wave 7 from the manual control system 3.
  • the control radio wave 7 is a FM wave which is generated by carrying out frequency modulation (FM) to an electric signal with the amplitude proportional to the control process quantity. Because the control radio wave 7 is the FM wave, it is difficult for the control process quantity to be erroneously transmitted, even if the control radio wave 7 is attenuated with water.
  • FM frequency modulation
  • the control radio wave 7 is received by the transmitting and receiving section 30.
  • the transmitting and receiving section 30 transfers the control process quantities of the pumps 28 1 and 28 2 and the motors 20 1 to 20 8 transmitted by the control radio wave 7 to the pumps 28 1 and 28 2 and the motors 20 1 to 20 8 , respectively.
  • only the pumps 28 1 and 28 2 , and the motors 20 1 , 20 1 , 20 7 , and 20 8 are illustrated in Fig. 6.
  • the pumps 28 1 and 28 2 inject and drain water into and from the tanks 29 1 and 29 2 in accordance with the transferred control process quantities.
  • the motors 20 1 to 20 8 set displacement quantities in accordance with the transferred control process quantities.
  • the motors 20 1 to 20 8 vibrate the pectoral fins 12 1 and 12 2 , the pelvic fins 13 1 and 13 2 , the first dorsal fin 14, the second dorsal fin 15, the first caudal fin 16, the first vibration fin 17 1 and the second the vibration fin 17 2 of the second caudal fin 17, respectively.
  • the fish robot 1 is controlled by the manual control system 3 or the automatic control system 4.
  • the transmitting and receiving section 30 transmits the control process quantity transmitted by the control radio wave 7 to the manual control system 3 with the echo radio wave 8.
  • the manual control system 3 transfers the control process quantity transmitted by the echo radio wave 8 to the automatic control system 4 as an echo signal 10.
  • the automatic control system 4 determines based on the echo signal 10, whether the control process quantity is transmitted right. Based on the determination, the automatic control system 4 sets a control process quantity of each of the pumps 28 1 and 28 2 and the motors 20 1 to 20 8 to be transmitted to the fish robot 1.
  • a supersonic transmitter may be used instead of the antenna 6.
  • a supersonic signal is used instead of the control radio wave 7 for controlling the fish robot 1.
  • the control radio wave 7 is equal to or less than 100 MHz because the attenuation of the radio wave in the underwater becomes high as the frequency is increased.
  • the present invention provides the fish robot realistically imitating fish which has a plurality of fins and a fin for the caudal portion.
  • the underwater navigation body of the fish robot type imitating the fish which has a plurality of fins can be made more compact.
  • an aquarium is provided in which the fish robots or fish robots similar to the above-mentioned fish robot swim in the water tank.
  • Fig. 7 shows the structure of the aquarium.
  • the aquarium has a water tank 102 in which water has been filled and a plurality of fish robots 1 are swimming in the water tank 102.
  • the fish robot 1 imitates the form of fish like abyssal fish which it is difficult to acquire, ancient fish like coelacanth, or fish which it is impossible to acquire because it had become extinct, from the viewpoint of increase of amusement.
  • the fish robot 1 imitates the form of the coelacanth.
  • Fig. 8 shows a control system of the fish robot in the second embodiment.
  • the aquarium further contains a supersonic sensor 103, an operation unit 104, a control unit 105 and a radio wave transmitting unit 106.
  • the supersonic sensor 103 is used to detect the position of the fish robot 1.
  • a joystick 104a and a switch are provided for the operation unit 104.
  • a visitor who visits the aquarium can instruct how the fish robot 1 swim by operating the joystick 104a.
  • the switch 4b designates whether the fish robot 1 is controlled based on the operation of the joystick 104a or in accordance with the algorithm which is described in the software loaded into the control unit 105, like the first embodiment.
  • the control unit 105 controls the fish robot 1 in accordance with the operation of the joystick 104a or the algorithm which is described in the loaded software based on the state of the switch 4b.
  • the control unit 105 generates a signal for controlling the fish robot 1.
  • the radio wave transmitting unit 106 sends the signal to the fish robot 1 with radio wave.
  • the fish robot 1 generates a supersonic signal a.
  • the supersonic signal a is used for the detection of the position of the fish robot 1.
  • the supersonic sensor 103 receives and converts the supersonic signal a propagated in the underwater into an electric signal b.
  • the electric signal b is transferred to the control unit 5.
  • the operation unit 104 transmits to the control unit 105 an operation signal c1 to indicate the content of the operation accomplished by the joystick 104a. Also, the operation unit 104 outputs to the control unit 105 a specification signal c2 for specifying that the fish robot 1 should be controlled in accordance with which of the detected movement of the fish robot 1 and the operation of the joystick 104a, based on the state of the switch 4b.
  • the control unit 105 contains a position detecting section 105 1 and a control section 105 2 .
  • the position detecting section 105 1 detects the position of the fish robot 1 based on the electric signal b.
  • the position of the fish robot 1 is notified to the control unit 105 2 by a position signal d.
  • the control section 105 2 determines the movement of the fish robot 1. When it is designated based on the switch that the fish robot 1 is controlled in accordance with the operation of the joystick 104a, the control section 105 2 determines the movement of the fish robot 1 based on the content of the operation of the joystick 104a. When it is designated based on the switch that the fish robot 1 is controlled in accordance with the algorithm which is described in the software loaded into the control unit 105, the control section 105 2 determines the movement of the fish robot 1 while the control unit 105 refers to the position of the fish robot 1 in accordance with the algorithm. The control section 105 2 generates and outputs a control signal e for instructing the movement of the fish robot 1 to the radio wave transmitting unit 106. The radio wave transmitting unit 106 converts the control signal e into a control radio wave f and sends it to the fish robot 1.
  • Fig. 9A is a plan view of the outward appearance of the fish robot 1.
  • Fig. 9B is a side view of the outward appearance of the fish robot 1.
  • the fish robot 1 contains a fish robot main unit 11.
  • Two pectoral fins 12 1 and 12 2 , two pelvic fins 13 1 and 13 2 , the first dorsal fin 14, the second dorsal fin 15, the first caudal fin 16, the second caudal fin 17 are connected with the fish robot main unit 11.
  • the caudal fin 18 is connected with the second caudal fin 17.
  • the pectoral fins 12 1 and 12 2 , the pelvic fins 13 1 and 13 2 , the first dorsal fin 14, the second dorsal fin 15, the first caudal fin 16, the second caudal fin 17 and the caudal fin 18 are formed of plastic material with elasticity.
  • the internal structure of the fish robot 1 in the second embodiment is same as in the first embodiment shown in Figs. 5A and 5B.
  • the different point between the first and second embodiments is in that the fish robot 1 contains the supersonic transmitting units 31.
  • the supersonic transmitting unit 31 sends the above-mentioned supersonic signal a.
  • the supersonic signal a is used for the detection of the position of the fish robot 1, as described above.
  • the fish robot 1 sinks and floats periodically.
  • the sinking and floating movement of the fish robot is achieved by injecting and draining water into and from the tanks 29 1 and 29 2 by the pumps 28 1 and 28 2 .
  • the fish robots 1 move to avoid crash.
  • the distance ⁇ I is detected based on the positions of the fish robots 1 which are detected by the position detecting section 5 1 . As shown in Fig. 12, it is supposed that the distance ⁇ I between the fish robot 1 1 and the fish robot 1 2 becomes smaller than the predetermined distance L. In this case, the angles ⁇ 1 and ⁇ 2 different each other are set to the fish robots 1 1 and the fish robots 1 2 , respectively.
  • the first vibration fin 17 1 and the second vibration fin 17 2 of the fish robot 1 1 are controlled to vibrate taking as a vibration center the angle ⁇ 1 from centerline 11a of the fish robot main unit 11, and the first vibration fin 17 1 and the second vibration fin 17 2 of the fish robot 1 2 are controlled to vibrate taking as a vibration center the angle ⁇ 2 from centerline 11a of the fish robot main unit 1 1 .
  • the fish robot 1 1 and the fish robot 1 2 move in different directions and crash of the fish robots can be avoided.
  • such a movement delights the visitor which sees the fish robots 1.
  • the fish robot 1 moves in response to the operation of the joystick 104a.
  • the control unit 105 controls the changes of the pectoral fins 12 1 and 12 2 , the pelvic fins 13 1 and 13 2 , the second dorsal fin 15, the first caudal fin 16, the second caudal fin 17 and the caudal fin 18 for the fish robot 1 to move in the specified direction.
  • the fish robot 1 moves in the specified direction in accordance with the operation of the joystick of 104a.
  • the operation person who operates the joystick 104a can enjoy that the fish robot 1 moves in accordance with the operation of the joystick 104a.
  • the movement of the fish robot 1 delights the person seeing it.
  • the entertainment of the aquarium in this embodiment is high and the visitor collecting effect can look forward to it.
  • a supersonic transmitting unit may be used instead of the radio wave transmitting unit 106.
  • a supersonic signal is used instead of the control radio wave f for controlling the fish robot 1.
  • the attenuation percentage of the radio wave in the underwater is about 10 dB/m when the frequency is 100Mz. This means that the communication between two in the radio wave is sufficiently possible, if the distance between the two is within 10 m. Therefore, the control of the fish robot 1 is carried out while using the control radio wave f and the quick signal processing inside the fish robot 1 is attempted.
  • control radio wave f is generated by FM-modulating the control signal e. It is difficult for the control radio wave f as an FM wave to undergo attenuation influence.
  • amusement facilities where the high visitor collection effect is expected can be provided in the present invention.

Landscapes

  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
  • Ocean & Marine Engineering (AREA)
  • Aviation & Aerospace Engineering (AREA)
  • Computer Networks & Wireless Communication (AREA)
  • Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
  • Combustion & Propulsion (AREA)
  • Toys (AREA)

Abstract

A fish-type underwater navigation body includes a caudal turning section provided for a caudal section of a main unit, a pair of first side turning sections provided in front lower sections of the main unit, and a pair of second side turning sections provided in side lower sections between a center section and the caudal section in the main unit. The fish-type underwater navigation body gets propulsion by turning the caudal turning section. Also, the pair of first side turning sections, the pair of second side turning sections and the caudal turning section function for attitude control of the fish-type underwater navigation body. <IMAGE>

Description

Technical Field
The present invention is relates to a fish-type underwater navigation body, a control system of the fish-type underwater navigation body, and an aquarium to exhibit a fish-type underwater navigation body.
Background Art
A first conventional example of an underwater navigation body is known in Japan Laid Open Patent Application (JP-A-Heisei 11-152085), in which a wing is vibrated like the fin of a fish for propulsion and steering. The first conventional example of the underwater navigation body is composed of wing portions 201a and 201b, as shown in Fig. 1. The wing portions 201a and 201b are connected in series. The wing portions 201a and 201b are turned around rotation axes 204 and 205, respectively. The vibration of the wing portions 201a and 201b is controlled in cooperation to each other, and the wing portions 201a and 201b operate flexibly like a caudal fin of the fish as a whole. Thus, the first conventional example of the underwater navigation body acquires propulsion. Also, the vibration of the wing portions 201a and 201b is controlled in the cooperation to each other and the steering is carried out. The first conventional example of the underwater navigation body contains a single tank 207. The up and down control of the underwater navigation body is carried out by water filling and drainage to the tank 207.
A second conventional example of the underwater navigation body is known in the above-mentioned reference. The second conventional example of the underwater navigation body is composed of a plurality of vibration wings 121 on the both edges of a main unit 222, as shown in Fig. 2. The vibration wings 221 are driven by a first actuator 224 to rotate around a vertical axis 225. In addition, the vibration wings 221 are driven by a second actuator 223 to turn around an axis 226. Thus, an angle is adjusted. In the second conventional example of the underwater navigation body, the propulsion and steering are carried out by the plurality of vibration wings 221. Either of the vibration wings 221 contributes both of the propulsion and the steering.
One of the application fields of such an underwater navigation body includes a fish robot (artificial fish). A lot of people expect new amusement facilities for their leisure. Such a fish robot has a high entertainment and a high needs as the new amusement facilities.
However, the amusement facilities in which the plurality of fish robots swim while imitating ecology in actual undersea do not exist conventionally, and the amusement facilities can be expected in collection of many visitors. Especially, the visitor collecting is effected in the amusement facilities where an ancient fish which does not exist like coelacanth swims.
Disclosure of Invention
Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a fish-type underwater navigation body like a fish robot imitating a fish having a plurality of fins such as pectoral fins, pelvic fins and a caudal fin.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a fish-type underwater navigation body like a fish robot which is stable in the attitude while swimming to generate propulsion.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a fish-type underwater navigation body like a fish robot which can be controlled externally.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a fish-type underwater navigation body control system which controls a fish-type underwater navigation body like a fish robot externally.
Another object of the present invention is to realize an aquarium in which a fish-type underwater navigation body like a fish robot swims, and which is an amusement facilities having a high visitor collecting effect.
In a first aspect of the present invention, a fish-type underwater navigation body includes a caudal turning section provided for a caudal section of a main unit, a pair of first side turning sections provided in front lower sections of the main unit, and a pair of second side turning sections provided in side lower sections between a center section and the caudal section in the main unit.
Here, the fish-type underwater navigation body generates propulsion by turning the caudal turning section. Also, the pair of first side turning sections, the pair of second side turning sections and the caudal turning section function for attitude control of the fish-type underwater navigation body.
Also, the fish-type underwater navigation body may further include a dorsal turning section provided for an upper section between the center section and the caudal section in the main unit and functions for attitude control of the fish-type underwater navigation body. Also, the fish-type underwater navigation body may further include another caudal turning section provided in the lower section between the center section and the caudal section in the main unit and functions for attitude control of the fish-type underwater navigation body.
Also, the caudal turning section of the fish-type underwater navigation body may include a first caudal turning section, and a second caudal turning section connected with the first caudal turning section. The first caudal turning section turns in response to a turning operation of the second caudal turning section so as to realize an operation similar to a fish. It is desirable that the turning frequency of the caudal turning section is determined based on a speed of the fish-type underwater navigation body and a width of the fish-type underwater navigation body in a direction perpendicular to a direction of movement of the fish-type underwater navigation body.
Also, the fish-type underwater navigation body may further include a flotage tank section, and movement of the fish-type underwater navigation body upwardly and downwardly is controlled based on a quantity of water in the flotage tank section. For smooth flotage and sinking operation, it is desirable that the flotage tank section includes a front flotage tank section and a rear flotage tank section. Also, for valance in the left and right directions, it is desirable that the rear flotage tank section includes a pair of flotage tank sections.
Also, the fish-type underwater navigation body may further include a driving section which drives the caudal turning section, the pair of first side turning sections and the pair of second side turning sections independently, a receiving section which receives a radio wave instruction signal propagated in underwater, and a control section which controls the driving section based on the radio wave instruction signal. In this way, it is possible to control the fish-type underwater navigation body. At the time, it is desirable that a frequency of the radio wave instruction signal is equal to or less than 100 MHz, in consideration of the attenuation of the radio wave instruction signal. Also, it is desirable that the fish-type underwater navigation body further includes a transmitting section which replies a content of the radio wave instruction signal when the radio wave instruction signal is received. Thus, it is possible to determine whether the instruction reached right.
In another aspect of the present invention, a fish-type underwater navigation body control system includes the above fish-type underwater navigation body, and a control unit which transmits a radio wave instruction signal to the fish-type underwater navigation body through underwater. The fish-type underwater navigation body further includes a driving section which drives the pair of first side turning sections, the a pair of second side turning sections and the caudal turning section independently, a receiving section which receives the radio wave instruction signal propagated in the underwater, and a drive control unit which controls the driving section based on the radio wave instruction signal.
In this case, it is desirable that the frequency of the radio wave instruction signal is equal to or less than 100 MHz.
Also, the control unit may further include an operation unit, and a transmitting section which outputs the radio wave instruction signal in the underwater based on an operation of the operation unit.
Also, the fish-type underwater navigation body may include a supersonic transmission section. In this case, the fish-type underwater navigation body control system further includes a position detecting section which detects the position of the fish-type underwater navigation body based on supersonic signals outputted from the supersonic transmission sections of the plurality of fish-type underwater navigation bodies. The control unit outputs the radio wave instruction signal to one of the plurality of fish-type underwater navigation bodies for avoidance of collision with another of the plurality of fish-type underwater navigation bodies based on the position detected by the position detecting section.
Also, when the plurality of the fish-type underwater navigation bodies swim, movement of one of the plurality of fish-type underwater navigation bodies is desirably determined based on the radio wave instruction signal generated based on the position detected by the position detecting section, for prevention of collision.
In another aspect of the present invention, an aquarium includes a water tank and at least one of the fish-type underwater navigation bodies. The fish-type underwater navigation body swims in the water tank.
Here, an outward appearance of the main unit of the fish-type underwater navigation body imitates coelacanth.
Also, a plurality of the fish-type underwater navigation body swim in the water tank, and each of the plurality of fish-type underwater navigation bodies move along closed loops, respectively. Also, each of the plurality of fish-type underwater navigation bodies sinks and floats periodically in a gravity direction.
Also, the aquarium may further include a control unit which transmits a radio wave instruction signal to the fish-type underwater navigation body through underwater. The fish-type underwater navigation body includes a driving section which drives the pair of first side turning sections, the pair of second side turning sections and the caudal turning section independently; a receiving section which receives the radio wave instruction signal propagated in the underwater; and a drive control unit which controls the driving section based on the radio wave instruction signal. The control unit further includes an operation section; and a transmitting section which outputs the radio wave instruction signal into the underwater based on an operation of the operation section.
Brief Description of Drawings
  • Fig. 1 is a diagram showing an underwater navigation body of a first conventional example;
  • Fig. 2 is a diagram showing another underwater navigation body of a second conventional example;
  • Fig. 3 is a diagram showing an underwater navigation body like a fish robot and a control system according to a first embodiment of the present invention;
  • Figs. 4A and 4B are diagrams showing the outward appearance of the underwater navigation body in the first embodiment;
  • Figs. 5A and 5B are diagrams showing the internal structure of the underwater navigation body in the first embodiment;
  • Fig. 6 is a diagram showing the control system of the underwater navigation body in the first embodiment;
  • Fig. 7 is a diagram showing an aquarium which exhibits the underwater navigation body, according to a second embodiment of the present invention;
  • Fig. 8 is a diagram showing the control system of the underwater navigation body in the second embodiment;
  • Fig. 9 is a diagram showing the outward appearance of the underwater navigation body in the second embodiment;
  • Figs. 10A and 10B are diagrams showing an operation of the underwater navigation body in the second embodiment;
  • Fig. 11 is a diagram showing an operation of the underwater navigation body in the second embodiment; and
  • Fig. 12 is a diagram showing an operation of the underwater navigation body in the second embodiment.
    • Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention
    Hereinafter, an underwater navigation body like a fish robot of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings.
    Fig. 3 shows a fish robot and a control system according to the first embodiment of the present invention. A fish robot 1 in a water tank 2 is controlled by a manual control system 3 or an automatic control system 4. By which of the manual control system 3 and the automatic control system 4 the fish robot 1 is controlled is switched by a switch 5 provided for the manual control system 3.
    An antenna 6 is provided for the manual control system 3 to transmit control radio wave 7 to the fish robot 1. The control radio wave 7 propagates through water in the water tank 2 and reaches the fish robot 1. The fish robot 1 operates in response to the control radio wave 7. Also, the fish robot 1 sends echo radio wave 8. The echo radio wave 8 contains data transmitted by the control radio wave 7, and is used to check whether the control radio wave 7 is normally transmitted. The antenna 6 receives the echo radio wave 8.
    Fig. 4A and 4B show the structure of the fish robot 1. The fish robot 1 imitates the form of a coelacanth. The fish robot 1 has many fins, as coelacanth having many fins.
    Fig. 4A is a plan view of the outward appearance of the fish robot 1, and Fig. 4B is a side view of the outward appearance of the fish robot 1. The fish robot 1 is composed of a fish robot main unit 11. Two pectoral fins 121 and 122, two pelvic fins 131 and 132, a first dorsal fin 14, a second dorsal fin 15, a first caudal fin 16 are connected with the fish robot main unit 11. A second caudal fin 17 is connected with a caudal portion of the fish robot main unit 11. A caudal fin 18 is connected with the second caudal fin 17. Each of the pectoral fins 121 and 122, the pelvic fins 131 and 132, the first dorsal fin 14, the second dorsal fin 15, the first caudal fin 16, the second caudal fin 17 and the caudal fin 18 is formed of a metal plate covered by a soft plastic film.
    Fig. 5A is a plan view showing the internal structure of the fish robot 1. As shown in Fig. 5A, the pectoral fins 121 and 122 are turnably connected with rotation axes 191 and 192, respectively. The pectoral fin 121 is driven by a motor 201 to vibrate (or turn) around the rotation axis 191 as shown by the arrow 211. The pectoral fin 122 is driven by a motor 202 to vibrate around the rotation axis 192, as shown by the arrow 212.
    Similarly, the pelvic fins 131 and 132 are also turnably connected with rotation axes (not illustrated), respectively. The pelvic fins 131 and 132 are driven by motors 203 and 204 shown in Fig. 5B, respectively. The pelvic fins 131 and 132 are vibrated as shown by the arrows 221 and 222 in Fig. 5A, respectively.
    Moreover, the second dorsal fin 15 and the first caudal fin 16 are turnably connected with rotation axes (not shown), respectively, in the same way. The second dorsal fin 15 and the first caudal fin 16 are driven by motors 205 and 206 shown in Fig. 5B, as shown by the arrows 23 and 24, respectively.
    The first dorsal fin 14 is fixed. The first dorsal fin 14 makes the posture of the fish robot 1 stable.
    The second caudal fin 17 contains a vibration fin 171 and a vibration fin 172. One end of the vibration fin 171 is turnably connected with a rotation axis 25, as shown in Fig. 5A. The vibration fin 171 is driven by a motor 207 to vibrate around rotation axis 25 as shown by the arrow 26. The other end of the vibration fin 171 is connected with a rotation axis 27. One end of the vibration wing 172 is turnably connected with the rotation axis 27. The vibration fin 172 vibrates around the rotation axis 27 as shown by the arrow 26.
    The phase of the vibration of the vibration fin 171 and the phase of the vibration of the vibration fin 172 are shifted from each other and the vibration fin 172 operates in response to the operation of the vibration fin 171. That is, the vibration fin 171 and the vibration fin 172 vibrate flexibly just like actual coelacanth.
    The frequency f of the vibration by the vibration fin 171 and the vibration fin 172 is expressed by the following equation: f = S·(U/D) where D is the width D of the fish robot main unit 11 (see Fig. 2A), U is the speed of the fish robot 1, and S is a constant. The constant S is set based on the movement and shape of an actual fish. By determining the frequency f in this way, the second caudal fin 17 vibrates just like genuine fish.
    As shown in Fig. 5B, the caudal fin 18 is connected with the second caudal fin 17. The caudal fin 18 turns around the rotation axis (not shown). The caudal fin 18 vibrates around the rotation axis (not shown) as shown by the arrow 26.
    The propulsion of the fish robot 1 is substantially generated only by the second caudal fin 17. The above-mentioned pectoral fins 121 and 122, pelvic fin 131 and 132, second dorsal fin 15, first caudal fin 16 and caudal fin 18 do not generate the propulsion of the fish robot 1 substantially. On the other hand, the posture of the fish robot 1 is controlled by all of the pectoral fins 121 and 122, the pelvic fins 131 and 132, the second dorsal fins 15, the first caudal fins 16, the second caudal fin 17 and the caudal fins 18. In this way, the behavior of the fish robot when the propulsion is generated and the posture is controlled is same as the actual coelacanth, resulting in the improvement of reality of the fish robot 1.
    Here, each of the pectoral fins 121 and 122, the pelvic fins 131 and 132, the second dorsal fin 15, and the first caudal fin 16, and the caudal fin 18 vibrates around only one rotation axis, and the number of degrees of freedom is single. The pectoral fins 121 and 122, the pelvic fins 131 and 132, the second dorsal fin 15, the first caudal fin 16 and the caudal fin 18 are driven by the motors, respectively. The pectoral fins 121 and 122, the pelvic fins 131 and 132, the second dorsal fin 15, the first caudal fin 16 and the caudal fin 18 which are used only for the control of the posture of the fish robot 1 do not have to do always a complicated movement. Therefore, the number of degrees of freedom in each of the pectoral fins 121 and 122, the pelvic fins 131 and 132, the second dorsal fin 15, the first caudal fin 16 and the caudal fin 18 is made single and a driving mechanical section can be made small in size.
    Moreover; the fish robot 1 contains pumps 281 and 282 and tanks 291 and 292 as shown in Fig. 5B. The tank 291 is situated on the head of the fish robot 1. The tank 292 contains two portions which are located to sandwich the above-mentioned motors 203 to 208.
    The pumps 281 and 282 injects and drains water into and from the tanks 291 and 292. A position of the fish robot 1 in a gravity direction is controlled based on the quantity of water inside the tanks. The fish robot 1 sinks and floats into and from the gravity direction by injecting and draining water into and from the tanks 291 and 292. Thus, the posture of the fish robot 1 is controlled. In this way, the provision of the plurality of the tanks 291 and 292 facilitates the control of the posture of the fish robot 1.
    Moreover, the fish robot 1 contains a battery cell 31 as a power section (Fig. 5B). The battery cell 31 supplies the whole fish robot 1 with the power supply voltage.
    Fig. 6 shows the control system for instructing the operation of the fish robot 1. Referring to Fig. 6, the fish robot 1 further contains a transmitting and receiving section 30. The transmitting and receiving section 30 receives the control radio wave 7 for instructing the operation of the fish robot 1. The control radio wave 7 contains a control process quantity of each of the motors 201 to 208 and the pumps 281 and 282. The motors 201 to 208 and the pumps 281 and 282 operate based on the control radio wave 7. That is, the frequency, phase and amplitude of the vibration of each of the above-mentioned pectoral fins 121 and 122, pelvic fins 131 and 132, second dorsal fin 15, first caudal fin 16, second caudal fin 17 and caudal fin 18 are controlled based on the control radio wave 7.
    The frequency, phase and amplitude of vibration of the pectoral fins 121 and 122, pelvic fins 131 and 132, second dorsal fin 15, first caudal fin 16, first vibration fin 171 and second vibration fin 172 of the second caudal fin 17, and caudal fin 18 are determined for the fish robot 1 to move in a desired direction at a desired speed. "Propulsion System with Flexible/Rigid Oscillating Fin", (IEEE Journal of Oceanic Engineering vol. 20, No. 1, (1995), pp. 23-30) or a neural network described in Japanese Patent No. 3117310 may be used for the determination. As a result, the pectoral fins 121 and 122, the pelvic fins 131 and 132, the second dorsal fin 15, the first caudal fin 16, the second caudal fin 17 and the caudal fin 18 are controlled by the control system 5, and move flexibly just as the fins of actual coelacanth. Such a movement delights the person who sees the fish robot 1.
    In this way, the fish robot 1 is possible to move without being connected with a cable. Because the fish robot 1 can move without being connected with the cable, the reality of the fish robot 1 is improved.
    Moreover, the transmitting and receiving section 30 sends data of the control process quantity of each of the motors 201 to 208 and the pumps 281 and 282 transmitted with the control radio wave 7, as echo radio wave 8. The control radio wave 7 to be propagated in underwater has a possibility to erroneously transfer the control process quantity. The echo radio wave 8 is used to confirm whether the control process quantity to each of the motors 201 to 208, and the pumps 281 and 282 is right transmitted.
    As mentioned above, the operation of the fish robot 1 is controlled by either of the manual control system 3 and the automatic control system 4. By which of the manual control system 3 and automatic control system 4, the fish robot 1 is controlled is switched by the switch 5.
    The manual control system 3 is used for the person who operates the fish robot 1 to instruct the operation of the fish robot 1. When the manual control system 3 is selected by the switch 5, the control process quantity of each of the pumps 281 and 282 and the motors 201 to 208 contained in the fish robot 1 is determined in accordance with the operation of the manual control system 3 by the operation person. The control process quantity is transmitted to the fish robot 1 with the control radio wave 7.
    When the automatic control system 4 is selected by the switch 5, the automatic control system 4 controls the fish robot 1 in accordance with algorithm defined by the software loaded thereinto. The automatic control system 4 determines the control process quantity of each of the pumps 281 and 282 and the motors 201 to 208 contained in the fish robot 1. The control process quantity is transferred to the manual control system 3 by a control signal 9 and then is transmitted to the fish robot 1 with the control radio wave 7 from the manual control system 3.
    The control radio wave 7 is a FM wave which is generated by carrying out frequency modulation (FM) to an electric signal with the amplitude proportional to the control process quantity. Because the control radio wave 7 is the FM wave, it is difficult for the control process quantity to be erroneously transmitted, even if the control radio wave 7 is attenuated with water.
    The control radio wave 7 is received by the transmitting and receiving section 30. The transmitting and receiving section 30 transfers the control process quantities of the pumps 281 and 282 and the motors 201 to 208 transmitted by the control radio wave 7 to the pumps 281 and 282 and the motors 201 to 208, respectively. However, only the pumps 281 and 282, and the motors 201, 201, 207, and 208 are illustrated in Fig. 6. The pumps 281 and 282 inject and drain water into and from the tanks 291 and 292 in accordance with the transferred control process quantities. The motors 201 to 208 set displacement quantities in accordance with the transferred control process quantities. The motors 201 to 208 vibrate the pectoral fins 121 and 122, the pelvic fins 131 and 132, the first dorsal fin 14, the second dorsal fin 15, the first caudal fin 16, the first vibration fin 171 and the second the vibration fin 172 of the second caudal fin 17, respectively. In this way, the fish robot 1 is controlled by the manual control system 3 or the automatic control system 4.
    Moreover, the transmitting and receiving section 30 transmits the control process quantity transmitted by the control radio wave 7 to the manual control system 3 with the echo radio wave 8. The manual control system 3 transfers the control process quantity transmitted by the echo radio wave 8 to the automatic control system 4 as an echo signal 10. The automatic control system 4 determines based on the echo signal 10, whether the control process quantity is transmitted right. Based on the determination, the automatic control system 4 sets a control process quantity of each of the pumps 281 and 282 and the motors 201 to 208 to be transmitted to the fish robot 1.
    It should be noted that in this embodiment, a supersonic transmitter may be used instead of the antenna 6. In this case, instead of the control radio wave 7 for controlling the fish robot 1, a supersonic signal is used. However, it is desirable to control the fish robot 1 using the control radio wave 7 like this embodiment, from the viewpoint of the high-speed signal processing in the fish robot 1.
    It is generally thought that it is difficult to transmit a signal through the underwater using the radio wave because the attenuation of the radio wave in the underwater is large. For this reason, when the signal is transmitted through the underwater, a supersonic signal is often used. However, it is actually possible to transmit a signal through the underwater with the radio wave. This is because the attenuation of the radio wave in the underwater is about 10 dB/m when the frequency is 100Mz. Therefore, the distance between two points is within 10 m, the communication between the two points is sufficiently possible using the radio wave. It should be noted that it is desirable that the control radio wave 7 is equal to or less than 100 MHz because the attenuation of the radio wave in the underwater becomes high as the frequency is increased.
    The present invention provides the fish robot realistically imitating fish which has a plurality of fins and a fin for the caudal portion.
    Also, according to the present invention, the underwater navigation body of the fish robot type imitating the fish which has a plurality of fins can be made more compact.
    Next, the second embodiment of the present invention will be described. In the second embodiment, an aquarium is provided in which the fish robots or fish robots similar to the above-mentioned fish robot swim in the water tank.
    Fig. 7 shows the structure of the aquarium. The aquarium has a water tank 102 in which water has been filled and a plurality of fish robots 1 are swimming in the water tank 102.
    It is desirable that the fish robot 1 imitates the form of fish like abyssal fish which it is difficult to acquire, ancient fish like coelacanth, or fish which it is impossible to acquire because it had become extinct, from the viewpoint of increase of amusement. In this embodiment, the fish robot 1 imitates the form of the coelacanth.
    Fig. 8 shows a control system of the fish robot in the second embodiment. The aquarium further contains a supersonic sensor 103, an operation unit 104, a control unit 105 and a radio wave transmitting unit 106. The supersonic sensor 103 is used to detect the position of the fish robot 1. A joystick 104a and a switch (not shown) are provided for the operation unit 104. A visitor who visits the aquarium can instruct how the fish robot 1 swim by operating the joystick 104a. The switch 4b designates whether the fish robot 1 is controlled based on the operation of the joystick 104a or in accordance with the algorithm which is described in the software loaded into the control unit 105, like the first embodiment.
    The control unit 105 controls the fish robot 1 in accordance with the operation of the joystick 104a or the algorithm which is described in the loaded software based on the state of the switch 4b. The control unit 105 generates a signal for controlling the fish robot 1. The radio wave transmitting unit 106 sends the signal to the fish robot 1 with radio wave.
    The fish robot 1 generates a supersonic signal a. The supersonic signal a is used for the detection of the position of the fish robot 1. The supersonic sensor 103 receives and converts the supersonic signal a propagated in the underwater into an electric signal b. The electric signal b is transferred to the control unit 5.
    On the other hand, the operation unit 104 transmits to the control unit 105 an operation signal c1 to indicate the content of the operation accomplished by the joystick 104a. Also, the operation unit 104 outputs to the control unit 105 a specification signal c2 for specifying that the fish robot 1 should be controlled in accordance with which of the detected movement of the fish robot 1 and the operation of the joystick 104a, based on the state of the switch 4b.
    The control unit 105 contains a position detecting section 1051 and a control section 1052. The position detecting section 1051 detects the position of the fish robot 1 based on the electric signal b. The position of the fish robot 1 is notified to the control unit 1052 by a position signal d.
    The control section 1052 determines the movement of the fish robot 1. When it is designated based on the switch that the fish robot 1 is controlled in accordance with the operation of the joystick 104a, the control section 1052 determines the movement of the fish robot 1 based on the content of the operation of the joystick 104a. When it is designated based on the switch that the fish robot 1 is controlled in accordance with the algorithm which is described in the software loaded into the control unit 105, the control section 1052 determines the movement of the fish robot 1 while the control unit 105 refers to the position of the fish robot 1 in accordance with the algorithm. The control section 1052 generates and outputs a control signal e for instructing the movement of the fish robot 1 to the radio wave transmitting unit 106. The radio wave transmitting unit 106 converts the control signal e into a control radio wave f and sends it to the fish robot 1.
    Next, the structure of the fish robot 1 will be described. Fig. 9A is a plan view of the outward appearance of the fish robot 1. Fig. 9B is a side view of the outward appearance of the fish robot 1. The fish robot 1 contains a fish robot main unit 11. Two pectoral fins 121 and 122, two pelvic fins 131 and 132, the first dorsal fin 14, the second dorsal fin 15, the first caudal fin 16, the second caudal fin 17 are connected with the fish robot main unit 11. The caudal fin 18 is connected with the second caudal fin 17. The pectoral fins 121 and 122, the pelvic fins 131 and 132, the first dorsal fin 14, the second dorsal fin 15, the first caudal fin 16, the second caudal fin 17 and the caudal fin 18 are formed of plastic material with elasticity.
    The internal structure of the fish robot 1 in the second embodiment is same as in the first embodiment shown in Figs. 5A and 5B. The different point between the first and second embodiments is in that the fish robot 1 contains the supersonic transmitting units 31. The supersonic transmitting unit 31 sends the above-mentioned supersonic signal a. The supersonic signal a is used for the detection of the position of the fish robot 1, as described above.
    Next, the movement of the fish robot 1 will be described with reference to Fig. 10A and 10B. When it is designated based on the switch that the fish robot 1 is controlled in accordance with the algorithm which is described to the software loaded into the control unit 105, an instruction is given for the fish robot 1 to swim along a closed loop 41, as shown in Fig. 10A. That is, the instruction is given to the fish robot 1 to vibrate the first vibration fin 171 and the second vibration fins 172 of the second caudal fin 17, such that the fish robot 1 swims to have a predetermined angle  from the centerline 11a of the fish robot main unit 11, as shown in Fig. 10B. When the first vibration fin 171 and the second vibration fin 172 are vibrated to have the predetermined angle  with respect to the centerline 11a, the fish robot 1 goes around along the closed loop 41.
    At this time, as shown in Fig. 11, the fish robot 1 sinks and floats periodically. Through the periodically sinking and floating movement of the fish robot 1, the movement of the fish robot 1 gets to be nearer the movement of the actual fish and the reality increases. The sinking and floating movement of the fish robot is achieved by injecting and draining water into and from the tanks 291 and 292 by the pumps 281 and 282.
    It should be noted that when the distance ΔI between the fish robots 1 becomes smaller than a predetermined distance L, the fish robots 1 move to avoid crash. The distance ΔI is detected based on the positions of the fish robots 1 which are detected by the position detecting section 51. As shown in Fig. 12, it is supposed that the distance ΔI between the fish robot 11 and the fish robot 12 becomes smaller than the predetermined distance L. In this case, the angles 1 and 2 different each other are set to the fish robots 11 and the fish robots 12, respectively. The first vibration fin 171 and the second vibration fin 172 of the fish robot 11 are controlled to vibrate taking as a vibration center the angle 1 from centerline 11a of the fish robot main unit 11, and the first vibration fin 171 and the second vibration fin 172 of the fish robot 12 are controlled to vibrate taking as a vibration center the angle 2 from centerline 11a of the fish robot main unit 11. Thus, the fish robot 11 and the fish robot 12 move in different directions and crash of the fish robots can be avoided. Moreover, such a movement delights the visitor which sees the fish robots 1.
    On the other hand, when it is specified that the fish robot 1 is controlled in accordance with the operation of the joystick 104a by the switch, as mentioned above, the fish robot 1 moves in response to the operation of the joystick 104a. When the direction in which the fish robot 1 should move is set by the joystick 104a, the control unit 105 controls the changes of the pectoral fins 121 and 122, the pelvic fins 131 and 132, the second dorsal fin 15, the first caudal fin 16, the second caudal fin 17 and the caudal fin 18 for the fish robot 1 to move in the specified direction. Thus, the fish robot 1 moves in the specified direction in accordance with the operation of the joystick of 104a. The operation person who operates the joystick 104a can enjoy that the fish robot 1 moves in accordance with the operation of the joystick 104a.
    In this way, the movement of the fish robot 1 delights the person seeing it. The entertainment of the aquarium in this embodiment is high and the visitor collecting effect can look forward to it.
    It should be noted that in this embodiment, a supersonic transmitting unit may be used instead of the radio wave transmitting unit 106. In this case, instead of the control radio wave f for controlling the fish robot 1, a supersonic signal is used. However, it is desirable to control the fish robots 1 using the control radio wave f like this embodiment from the viewpoint of a quick signal processing inside the fish robot 1. It is considered generally that it is difficult to transmit a signal in the underwater with the radio wave, because the attenuation percentage of the radio wave in the underwater is large. Therefore, when a signal is transmitted in the underwater, a supersonic signal is often used. However, it is actually possible to transmit a signal in the radio wave to be propagated in underwater. The reason is that the attenuation percentage of the radio wave in the underwater is about 10 dB/m when the frequency is 100Mz. This means that the communication between two in the radio wave is sufficiently possible, if the distance between the two is within 10 m. Therefore, the control of the fish robot 1 is carried out while using the control radio wave f and the quick signal processing inside the fish robot 1 is attempted.
    It is desirable that the control radio wave f is generated by FM-modulating the control signal e. It is difficult for the control radio wave f as an FM wave to undergo attenuation influence.
    The amusement facilities where the high visitor collection effect is expected can be provided in the present invention.

    Claims (23)

    1. A fish-type underwater navigation body comprising:
      a caudal turning section provided for a caudal section of a main unit;
      a pair of first side turning sections provided in front lower sections of said main unit; and
      a pair of second side turning sections provided in side lower sections between a center section and the caudal section in said main unit.
    2. The fish-type underwater navigation body according to claim 1, wherein propulsion is generated by turning said caudal turning section.
    3. The fish-type underwater navigation body according to claim 1 or 2, wherein said pair of first side turning sections, said pair of second side turning sections and said caudal turning section function for attitude control of said fish-type underwater navigation body.
    4. The fish-type underwater navigation body according to any of claims 1 to 3, further comprising:
      a dorsal turning section provided for an upper section between the center section and the caudal section in said main unit and functioning for attitude control of said fish-type underwater navigation body.
    5. The fish-type underwater navigation body according to any of claims 1 to 4, further comprising:
      another caudal turning section provided in a lower section between the center section and the caudal section in said main unit and functioning for attitude control of said fish-type underwater navigation body.
    6. The fish-type underwater navigation body according to any of claims 1 to 6, wherein said caudal turning section comprises:
      a first caudal turning section; and
      a second caudal turning section connected with said first caudal turning section, and
      said first caudal turning section turns in response to a turning operation of said second caudal turning section.
    7. The fish-type underwater navigation body according to claim 6, wherein a turning frequency of said caudal turning section is determined based on a speed of said fish-type underwater navigation body and a width of said fish-type underwater navigation body in a direction perpendicular to a direction of movement of said fish-type underwater navigation body.
    8. The fish-type underwater navigation body according to any of claims 1 to 7, further comprising:
      a flotage tank section, and
         wherein movement of said fish-type underwater navigation body upwardly and downwardly is controlled based on a quantity of water in said flotage tank section.
    9. The fish-type underwater navigation body according to claim 8, wherein said flotage tank section comprises:
      a front flotage tank section and a pair of rear flotage tank sections.
    10. The fish-type underwater navigation body according to any of claims 1 to 9, further comprising:
      a driving section which drives said caudal turning section, said pair of first side turning sections and said pair of second side turning sections independently;
      a receiving section which receives a radio wave instruction signal propagated in underwater; and
      a control section which controls said driving section based on said radio wave instruction signal.
    11. The fish-type underwater navigation body according to claim 10, wherein a frequency of said radio wave instruction signal is equal to or less than 100 MHz.
    12. The fish-type underwater navigation body according to claim 10 or 11, further comprising:
      a transmitting section which replies a content of said radio wave instruction signal when said radio wave instruction signal is received.
    13. A fish-type underwater navigation body control system comprising:
      said fish-type underwater navigation body according to any of claims 1 to 12; and
      a control unit which transmits a radio wave instruction signal to said fish-type underwater navigation body through underwater,
         wherein said fish-type underwater navigation body further comprises:
      a driving section which drives said pair of first side turning section, said pair of second side turning sections and said caudal turning section independently;
      a receiving section which receives said radio wave instruction signal propagated in the underwater; and
      a drive control unit which controls said driving section based on said radio wave instruction signal.
    14. The fish-type underwater navigation body control system according to claim 13, wherein a frequency of said radio wave instruction signal is equal to or less than 100 MHz.
    15. The fish-type underwater navigation body control system according to claim 13 or 14,
      wherein said control unit comprises:
      an operation unit; and
      a transmitting unit which outputs said radio wave instruction signal in the underwater based on an operation of said operation unit.
    16. The fish-type underwater navigation body control system according to any of claims 13 to 15, wherein said fish-type underwater navigation body comprises:
      a supersonic transmitting section,
      said fish-type underwater navigation body control system further comprises:
      a position detecting section which detects a position of each of a plurality of said fish-type underwater navigation bodies based on supersonic signals outputted from said supersonic transmitting sections of said plurality of fish-type underwater navigation bodies, and
      said control unit outputs said radio wave instruction signal to one of said plurality of fish-type underwater navigation bodies for avoidance of collision with another of said plurality of fish-type underwater navigation bodies based on the positions detected by said position detecting section.
    17. The fish-type underwater navigation body control system according to any of claim 13 to 16, wherein said plurality of the fish-type underwater navigation bodies swim, and
         movement of one of said plurality of fish-type underwater navigation bodies is determined based on said radio wave instruction signal generated based on the positions detected by said position detecting section.
    18. An aquarium comprising:
      a water tank; and
      at least one of said fish-type underwater navigation bodies according to any of claims 1 to 12, and
         wherein said fish-type underwater navigation body swims in said water tank.
    19. The aquarium according to claim 18, wherein an outward appearance of said main unit of said fish-type underwater navigation body imitates coelacanth.
    20. The aquarium according to claim 18 or 19, wherein a plurality of said fish-type underwater navigation bodies swim in said water tank, and
         each of said plurality of fish-type underwater navigation bodies moves along a closed loop.
    21. The aquarium according to any of claims 18 to 20, wherein each of said plurality of fish-type underwater navigation bodies sinks and floats periodically in a gravity direction.
    22. The aquarium according to any of claims 18 to 21, further comprising:
      a control unit which transmits a radio wave instruction signal to said fish-type underwater navigation body through underwater, and
      said fish-type underwater navigation body comprises:
      a driving section which drives said pair of first side turning sections, said pair of second side turning sections and said caudal turning section independently;
      a receiving section which receives said radio wave instruction signal propagated in the underwater; and
      a drive control unit which controls said driving section based on said radio wave instruction signal.
    23. The aquarium according to claim 22, wherein the control unit comprises:
      an operation section; and
      a transmitting section which outputs said radio wave instruction signal into the underwater based on an operation of the operation section.
    EP02722888A 2002-04-30 2002-04-30 Fish-shaped underwater navigating body, control system thereof, and aquarium Withdrawn EP1535654A4 (en)

    Applications Claiming Priority (1)

    Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
    PCT/JP2002/004306 WO2003092843A1 (en) 2002-04-30 2002-04-30 Fish-shaped underwater navigating body, control system thereof, and aquarium

    Publications (2)

    Publication Number Publication Date
    EP1535654A1 true EP1535654A1 (en) 2005-06-01
    EP1535654A4 EP1535654A4 (en) 2005-12-07

    Family

    ID=29287937

    Family Applications (1)

    Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
    EP02722888A Withdrawn EP1535654A4 (en) 2002-04-30 2002-04-30 Fish-shaped underwater navigating body, control system thereof, and aquarium

    Country Status (3)

    Country Link
    US (1) US20050235899A1 (en)
    EP (1) EP1535654A4 (en)
    WO (1) WO2003092843A1 (en)

    Cited By (10)

    * Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
    Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
    CN100372734C (en) * 2006-09-01 2008-03-05 北京大学 A sinusoidal propulsion mechanism with adjustable swing for robotic dolphins
    WO2008026013A1 (en) * 2006-08-31 2008-03-06 Constantinos Kaiserlis Specialised hydrodynamic structure of hulls for sea-vessels
    FR2915956A1 (en) * 2007-05-10 2008-11-14 Christophe Tiraby SUBMERSIBLE APPARATUS WITH SOFT SEALING MEMBRANES
    EP1991328A4 (en) * 2006-03-08 2011-06-22 Swimways Corp Submersible device with selectable buoyancy
    CN102152845A (en) * 2011-04-11 2011-08-17 中国科学院深圳先进技术研究院 Sine feed mechanism
    KR101204419B1 (en) * 2010-10-28 2012-11-26 (주)아이엠테크놀로지 Submarine robot control system and method for controlling the same
    CN103224017A (en) * 2013-04-06 2013-07-31 哈尔滨工业大学 Planar series-parallel bionic swing propelling mechanism with variable stiffness
    CN103785179A (en) * 2012-11-01 2014-05-14 西安华科光电有限公司 Bionic goldfish toy with underwater wireless power supply function and wireless power supply and control system of bionic goldfish toy
    IT201700036646A1 (en) * 2017-04-04 2018-10-04 Daniele Checchin UNDERWATER ROBOT CONTROLLED FROM DISTANCE
    CN113305850A (en) * 2021-06-15 2021-08-27 西南科技大学 Flexible robot and design method thereof

    Families Citing this family (27)

    * Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
    Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
    US20060156851A1 (en) * 2004-12-02 2006-07-20 Jacobsen Stephen C Mechanical serpentine device
    EP2476604B1 (en) 2006-11-13 2013-08-21 Raytheon Company Tracked robotic crawler having a moveable arm
    CN101626946B (en) 2006-11-13 2013-06-05 雷神萨科斯公司 Suspension system for light robot vehicle and the vehicle support method
    CN102141181B (en) 2006-11-13 2014-10-08 雷神萨科斯公司 Serpentine robotic crawler
    DE602007007807D1 (en) * 2006-11-13 2010-08-26 Raytheon Sarcos Llc VERSATILE USEFUL BAND FOR LIGHTWEIGHT MOBILE ROBOTS
    CN100465065C (en) * 2006-12-11 2009-03-04 北京大学 A modular bionic robotic fish
    WO2008137953A1 (en) 2007-05-07 2008-11-13 Raytheon Sarcos, Llc Method for manufacturing a complex structure
    CN101784435B (en) 2007-07-10 2013-08-28 雷神萨科斯公司 Modular robotic crawler
    US8392036B2 (en) 2009-01-08 2013-03-05 Raytheon Company Point and go navigation system and method
    US8317555B2 (en) 2009-06-11 2012-11-27 Raytheon Company Amphibious robotic crawler
    US8935014B2 (en) 2009-06-11 2015-01-13 Sarcos, Lc Method and system for deploying a surveillance network
    US20120040324A1 (en) * 2010-08-12 2012-02-16 Polytechnic Institute Of New York University Remotely controlled biomimetic robotic fish as a scientific and educational tool
    US8393422B1 (en) 2012-05-25 2013-03-12 Raytheon Company Serpentine robotic crawler
    US9031698B2 (en) 2012-10-31 2015-05-12 Sarcos Lc Serpentine robotic crawler
    US9409292B2 (en) 2013-09-13 2016-08-09 Sarcos Lc Serpentine robotic crawler for performing dexterous operations
    CN104325828A (en) * 2014-11-21 2015-02-04 杨温圣 Wireless powered simulated fish tank
    CN105022269B (en) * 2015-07-13 2017-08-25 北京航空航天大学 The control method and device in bionic machine fish joint
    US10807659B2 (en) 2016-05-27 2020-10-20 Joseph L. Pikulski Motorized platforms
    US10071303B2 (en) 2015-08-26 2018-09-11 Malibu Innovations, LLC Mobilized cooler device with fork hanger assembly
    CN107466280B (en) * 2017-04-28 2019-07-12 天长市未名机器人有限责任公司 Machine fish in a kind of simple joint water
    CN111290414B (en) * 2018-12-10 2024-09-27 中国科学院沈阳自动化研究所 Underwater equipment control method and device based on attitude control
    WO2020222320A1 (en) * 2019-04-29 2020-11-05 엘지전자 주식회사 Swimming robot and display device
    US10935986B1 (en) * 2019-11-28 2021-03-02 Institute Of Automation, Chinese Academy Of Sciences Gliding depth control method, system and device for biomimetic gliding robotic dolphin
    CN112429182A (en) * 2020-12-03 2021-03-02 上海江南长兴造船有限责任公司 Underwater ship shell inspection equipment
    US12311550B2 (en) 2020-12-31 2025-05-27 Sarcos Corp. Smart control system for a robotic device
    CN113075936A (en) * 2021-06-07 2021-07-06 深之蓝海洋科技股份有限公司 Underwater robot display method, device and system
    WO2025163641A1 (en) * 2024-02-01 2025-08-07 Maytronics Ltd. Wireless communication with at least partly submerged pool cleaning platform through intermediary low frequency radio repeater

    Family Cites Families (12)

    * Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
    Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
    US2329564A (en) * 1942-07-18 1943-09-14 Frank E Thomas Toy crocodile
    US3077698A (en) * 1959-07-27 1963-02-19 Marvin I Glass Toy fish
    US4082063A (en) * 1976-08-23 1978-04-04 Strickland Robert E Alternately ascending and descending aquatic article
    JPS61200090A (en) * 1985-02-28 1986-09-04 Okuyama Akita Floating and diving system for compact diving boat
    US4687456A (en) * 1986-01-23 1987-08-18 Wang Ming Jeng Irregular motion type fish shape diving toy
    GB8626817D0 (en) * 1986-11-10 1986-12-10 Duncan Products Ltd Aquatic toys
    JPH03112251U (en) * 1990-03-01 1991-11-18
    US5405465A (en) * 1993-04-02 1995-04-11 Masudaya Corporation Method of making a magnetic toy fish
    US5344357A (en) * 1993-10-04 1994-09-06 Lyczek Edmund K Controllable aquatic toy with oscillating and steerable tail
    JP3474344B2 (en) * 1996-01-09 2003-12-08 日本信号株式会社 Mobile control device
    JP3416522B2 (en) * 1997-09-18 2003-06-16 三菱重工業株式会社 Underwater vehicle with vibrating wings
    JP2002055154A (en) * 2000-08-10 2002-02-20 Mitsubishi Heavy Ind Ltd Swimming body in water vessel, and controller and position measuring instrument therefor

    Cited By (16)

    * Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
    Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
    EP1991328A4 (en) * 2006-03-08 2011-06-22 Swimways Corp Submersible device with selectable buoyancy
    WO2008026013A1 (en) * 2006-08-31 2008-03-06 Constantinos Kaiserlis Specialised hydrodynamic structure of hulls for sea-vessels
    CN100372734C (en) * 2006-09-01 2008-03-05 北京大学 A sinusoidal propulsion mechanism with adjustable swing for robotic dolphins
    CN101678884B (en) * 2007-05-10 2013-05-29 克里斯托夫·蒂拉比 Diving device with flexible sealing film
    WO2008141913A3 (en) * 2007-05-10 2009-02-05 Christophe Tiraby Submersible apparatus including flexible waterproofing membranes
    US8322296B2 (en) 2007-05-10 2012-12-04 Christophe Tiraby Submersible apparatus including flexible waterproofing membranes
    FR2915956A1 (en) * 2007-05-10 2008-11-14 Christophe Tiraby SUBMERSIBLE APPARATUS WITH SOFT SEALING MEMBRANES
    KR101204419B1 (en) * 2010-10-28 2012-11-26 (주)아이엠테크놀로지 Submarine robot control system and method for controlling the same
    CN102152845A (en) * 2011-04-11 2011-08-17 中国科学院深圳先进技术研究院 Sine feed mechanism
    CN102152845B (en) * 2011-04-11 2013-07-03 中国科学院深圳先进技术研究院 Sine feed mechanism
    CN103785179A (en) * 2012-11-01 2014-05-14 西安华科光电有限公司 Bionic goldfish toy with underwater wireless power supply function and wireless power supply and control system of bionic goldfish toy
    CN103224017A (en) * 2013-04-06 2013-07-31 哈尔滨工业大学 Planar series-parallel bionic swing propelling mechanism with variable stiffness
    CN103224017B (en) * 2013-04-06 2015-05-06 哈尔滨工业大学 Planar series-parallel bionic swing propelling mechanism with variable stiffness
    IT201700036646A1 (en) * 2017-04-04 2018-10-04 Daniele Checchin UNDERWATER ROBOT CONTROLLED FROM DISTANCE
    CN113305850A (en) * 2021-06-15 2021-08-27 西南科技大学 Flexible robot and design method thereof
    CN113305850B (en) * 2021-06-15 2022-03-08 西南科技大学 Flexible robot and design method thereof

    Also Published As

    Publication number Publication date
    WO2003092843A1 (en) 2003-11-13
    US20050235899A1 (en) 2005-10-27
    EP1535654A4 (en) 2005-12-07

    Similar Documents

    Publication Publication Date Title
    EP1535654A1 (en) Fish-shaped underwater navigating body, control system thereof, and aquarium
    US8154953B1 (en) Remote controlled fish locating system
    US5344357A (en) Controllable aquatic toy with oscillating and steerable tail
    US10882591B2 (en) Modular biomimetic underwater vehicle
    CN111746764B (en) Biological heuristic underwater robot
    US7246567B2 (en) Remote operated vehicles
    US8804461B2 (en) Self-propelled buoy for monitoring underwater objects
    CN109760811B (en) Based on bionical squid of sea house ornamental type
    JP2002136776A (en) Fish robot and underwater communication apparatus
    CN109633659A (en) Small sonar array system and device for underwater monitoring combined with unmanned ship
    US20050102883A1 (en) Remote control bobber
    WO2013119433A1 (en) Semi-autonomous underwater vehicle
    US20190187712A1 (en) Remotely-Controlled Observation Vehicle for Observing Swimmers
    CN111268072B (en) Underwater buffer robot and working method thereof
    WO2003101185A3 (en) Buoy for fish finding method and system
    CN109963117B (en) Autonomous tracking shooting system of underwater vehicle
    CN209905022U (en) An ornamental bionic squid based on aquarium
    Hu et al. Development and target following of vision-based autonomous robotic fish
    US20050138857A1 (en) Transmitting control device for a navigable fishing apparatus and a fishing pole and transmitter assembly
    JP7136497B1 (en) Detection direction adjustment device and underwater detection system
    JP2003202922A (en) Wireless steering system and wireless steering method
    Yu et al. Design of a free-swimming biomimetic robot fish
    US20040224597A1 (en) Miniature motorized vehicles on retrievable tether line
    JPH0228095A (en) Underwater robot
    JP2957973B2 (en) Vibrating lure

    Legal Events

    Date Code Title Description
    PUAI Public reference made under article 153(3) epc to a published international application that has entered the european phase

    Free format text: ORIGINAL CODE: 0009012

    17P Request for examination filed

    Effective date: 20041012

    AK Designated contracting states

    Kind code of ref document: A1

    Designated state(s): AT BE CH CY DE DK ES FI FR GB GR IE IT LI LU MC NL PT SE TR

    A4 Supplementary search report drawn up and despatched

    Effective date: 20051024

    17Q First examination report despatched

    Effective date: 20061121

    STAA Information on the status of an ep patent application or granted ep patent

    Free format text: STATUS: THE APPLICATION IS DEEMED TO BE WITHDRAWN

    18D Application deemed to be withdrawn

    Effective date: 20070403