Positively buoyant autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) operate at survey speeds with a pitch angle that ismaintained through application of the control surfaces, sufficient to generate hydrodynamic forces to counteract theexcess buoyancy. To facilitate lower forward speeds and the ability to hover requires some additional method ofcontrol. This paper reviews possible options and then indicates how control can be achieved using a single or pair ofthrough-body tunnel thrusters. New equations appropriate to AUVs are proposed and experimental results are used toestimate the equation parameters. These equations are used within a simulation of the Autosub AUV to determine theresponse of the AUV during the transition between survey and low speed operation. The results obtained from thesimulations are analysed in terms of the performance of the AUV and the demanded energy levels to assess thefeasibility of using tunnel thrusters as a low speed control device.
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