Newton Gripper and the Eagle Ray

Blue Robotics Products Newton Gripper
1

We are considering purchasing a Newton Gripper for use on an Eagle Ray ROV. Is it relatively easy to integrate the Gripper into the existing Eagle Ray electronics? For example, would it be similar to connecting another ESC/Thruster?
Thanks!

2

Hi @Gina -
The Newton Gripper takes the same PWM signal that brushless ESCs do. However, the DeepTrekker is closed-source, and not user modifiable to the best of my knowledge. I’d recommend asking the vendor, but they’re likely to tell you that only their hardware is compatible…

3

Hi Tony,
Thanks for your quick response. However, I’m a bit confused. The Eagle Ray is an ROV that was developed in a partnership with Blue Robotics and MATE, an organization that runs an underwater ROV comp for students. Therefore I assumed Blue Robotics would know how easy or hard it would be to incorporate the Newton Gripper into the electronics enclosure. I’m pretty sure its possible, I’ve seen other teams do it, but I was trying to get a feel of how much effort it would be. We’re pretty much newbies and modifying electronics isn’t my forte. Also, I don’t know what the Deep Trekker is.
I’m sure you understand that the Gripper is a big purchase for a community college engineering club, so I need to look before I leap.
Thanks!

4

Hi @Gina -
My apologies, I got the Eagle Ray mixed up with an ROV developed by another manufacturer, Deep Trekker, and I was unaware of the collaboration you referred to as it is a couple years old…

If it is based on a standard BlueROV2 electronics (Pi & Navigator or Pixhawk), you can simply follow the integration guide to install it! This and all technical information is available on the product page…

5

Hi @Gina, welcome to the forum :slight_smile:

I don’t believe @tony-white or I are familiar with this vehicle, although I did some searching online and managed to find a university deep-sea mapping AUV, but also a Facebook post seemingly about the vehicle you’re referring to, which mentions Blue Robotics hosted its launch, and shows that it includes some Blue Robotics components.

I also came across this video, which shows that it doesn’t use our control electronics, so detailed advice might be difficult for us to provide without more information about the electronics you’re using and the code you’re trying to run for control.

Yes, with some minor caveats:

  1. Our Newton Gripper’s supply voltage is specified as 9-18 V
    • This is similar to, but not quite as broad as the 7-20V rating for our T200 Thrusters
  2. The control signal is interpreted as only Close/Stop/Open states, as opposed to the gradient range of speeds a thruster ESC can output between reversed and forwards
1 Like
6

Thanks for your help. I have not yet figured out the electronics. Right now, it’s a kit with some instructions in my lab. I’ll have to start the build with my students and then maybe we can revisit the idea. Stay tuned!