Hello BR community,
I am developing a solar AUV/ASV, which will use its thrusters primarily for locomotion at the surface. When it dives, it is mainly for data acquisition and doesn’t need propulsion below the surface (it uses a variable ballast system). I intend to use a Blue Trail Engineering THR-100X thruster along the center axis for its primary propulsion. In addition to that, I plan to use two smaller thrusters out to the sides to generate differential thrust to turn the vehicle.
The vehicle will travel several miles offshore to 3 preprogrammed dive locations. Precision is not a priority, just general accuracy.
The vehicle is limited to 300m depth, and I intend to operate it up to that depth. A servo-based rudder won’t work because the Blue Trail Engineering servos won’t work since they aren’t rated for that pressure.
I could use two THR-100X thrusters offset to each side to power and steer the vehicle. However, it is a bit out of the current budget to purchase two.
My current plan is to use the singleTHR-100X thruster fixed on the center axis to do the majority of the forward-thrusting, and then an offset T-200 thruster on each side to generate differential thrust to give steering inputs.
I haven’t done any power budget analysis yet, and I know the T-200s are FAR less efficient than the THR-100x, but they have a great value and can easily tolerate 300m depth. I was hoping to get some feedback or alternative solutions.
The only other thing that comes to mind would be modifying a T-200 motor into a rudder system.
As a side note, the amount of thrust per watt that the THR-100X is astonishing. I’ve been designing this platform since early 2019, and when I saw the THR-100X come out, it was jaw-dropping, so hats off to Damon McMillan at Blue Trail Engineering.
Thanks for the help, guys,
Tyler Sims