Team Kanaloa

Ordnance Reef 2016-2017

Mission

Team Kanaloa shall develop an Autonomous Surface Vehicle (ASV) that is capable of autonomous way-point navigation, station-keeping, object detection and avoidance, deployment and retrieval of a Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV), and active ROV tether management, and said ROV shall be capable of manipulating underwater sensors and surveying the ocean floor at Ordnance Reef.

Project Objectives

The ASV shall:

Be able to autonomously navigate to a user-specified Global Positioning System (GPS) coordinate
Be able to autonomously station-keep at the desired GPS coordinate
Be able to manually launch and recover a ROV
Be able to autonomously manage the ROV’s tether

The ROV shall:

Be able to manipulate/service underwater sensors
Be able to survey the ocean floor

The purpose of this research project is to develop the necessary robotic system(s) to semi-autonomously service ocean current-monitoring sensors and survey the ocean floor for unexploded munitions at Ordnance Reef off the coast of Waianae on Oahu. Ordnance Reef, an area located within Pokai Bay contains unexploded underwater military munitions (UWMM) between 0.5 and 1 kilometers from shore at a depth of 18 to 50 meters [1]. The unexploded munitions pose an immediate risk to individuals who work and leisure in the surrounding area. Multiple surveys and studies have been conducted to determine environmental risk. As shown the figure, Ordnance Reef is located offshore of many communities including Waianae, Maili, Makaha, and Nanakuli and encompasses a portion of the State of Hawaii designated fishing haven [1,2].

In 1992, the City and County of Honolulu Department of Wastewater Management conducted an ocean floor survey pertaining to sewage outfall and discovered discarded UWMM scattered across a four square kilometer area. These UWMM include: 0.5 caliber bullets, several millimeter large projectiles, cartridges, and even a mortar [1].

In 2002, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineering conducted its own investigation to determine the distribution and depths of the UWMM within a specified study area. This investigation involved using a SCUBA diver to survey the area. Due to the diver’s physical inability to reach the deepest portion of the survey area, only being able to reach a depth of 40 meters [1], certain areas could not be surveyed. The investigation also discovered that the items discovered during the investigation were not unexploded ordnance that posed a health and safety risk towards human life, but rather discarded military munitions [1, 2].

In 2006, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers returned and collaborated with the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to begin assessing boundaries of where the UWMM were disposed and to quantify exactly how many UWMM could be found [1, 2]. Environmental studies took place using samples of the seawater, sediments, wildlife, and even metals that had corroded from the UWMM [1]. NOAA also reported on the actual explosives hazards and human health risks relating to the UWMM. The U.S. Army Technical Center for Explosives Safety finally determined that the UWMM found at Ordnance Reef did not pose an immediate explosives safety hazard [2]. It did state that that assessment may change if deliberate action were made against the UWMM, such as divers going down to a UWMM and agitating it in its resting position. The final judgement was to leave the UWMM the way they were found [2]. In order to lower the risk involved with leaving the UWMM there, as well as to prevent any future tampering, the United Stated Department of Defense (DoD) recommended enforcing explosives safety education programs for the affected communities nearby [2].

In 2009, Ordnance Reef was surveyed again to determine any potential shortcomings stemming from the 2006 survey. SONAR equipment was also used to accurately determine the location of UWMM before a ROV was used in tandem with divers [1, 2]. This was the first use of a ROV in a survey of Ordnance Reef, which was also a test to address the limitations and uncertainties involving human operators. Some uncertainties that were addressed include destroying UWMM in place, reaching areas too deep or too dangerous for SCUBA divers, and addressing the substantial quantity of UWMM found at Ordnance Reef [2]. The Teledyne Benthos Stingray ROV was launched and recovered from the stern of the Manacat survey vessel.

In 2011, another survey took place at Ordnance Reef, this time with actual recovery and destruction of UWMM. The U.S. Army performed the survey to determine what system could be implemented to safely recover UWMM in other areas. The main goals were to design a system that addresses the high costs that result from the explosive hazards of the UWMM, as well as providing safe, remote identification and recovery of UWMM [2]. The prospective benefits of this system include reducing the number of required personnel (specifically divers), increasing the amount of time underwater to do work, and decrease the margin of error [2]. The ROV that was utilized for this survey was a part of the Remotely Operated Underwater Munitions
Recovery System component system which involves assembling off-the-shelf components to meet the U.S. Army’s criteria for recovering UWMM [1,2]. The U.S. Army used the Sub-Atlantic Comanche Observation ROV along with other components to survey, recover, and destroy UWMM at Ordnance Reef [2].

The problem herein revolves around maintaining the current-monitoring sensors in place at Ordnance Reef, and surveying the ocean floor for undocumented munitions. However, maintaining these sensors that monitor the area is costly and places human operators, such as divers, in danger when surveying the ocean floor. Moreover, due to high cost and safety concerns, the proper tools necessary to carry out these tasks are sparse. A budget-minded and safe solution is needed to help service these sensors and survey the area without directly putting people in harm’s way. Therefore, developing low cost robotics system(s) will help address these concerns.

[1] Garcia, Sonia Shjegstad, MacDonald, Kathryn, De Carlo, Eric Heinen, Overfield, Mike L., Reyer, Tony, and Rolfe, Jason. “Discarded Military Munitions Case Study: Ordnance Reef (HI-06), Hawaii.” Marine Technology Society Vol. 43 No. 4 (2009): pp. 85-99. DOI 10.4031/MTSJ.43.4.13.

[2] Carton, Geoffrey, King, J. C., and Bowers, R. Josh. “Munitions-Related Technology Demonstrations at Ordnance Reef (HI-06), Hawaii.” Marine Technology Society Journal Vol. 46 No. 1 (2012): pp.#63-82. DOI 10.4031/MTSJ.46.1.9.

Last Updated: Dec. 11, 2017
Behind Schedule on integrating the Reel and Arm for ROV deployment into the overall system.

Date

Project Updates

12/8

Comprehensive Design Review completed

12/1

Malama Maunalua Algae Clean-Up

11/27

Field test #5: Testing multiple GPS modules

11/17

Field test #4: Testing multiple GPSs and wireless range

11/8

Preliminary Design Review completed

11/1

ARL REP Demo: Demonstrate situational awareness capabilities of ASV

10/30

Field test #3: Testing wireless range of new WiFi antennas and remote control range

10/29

Field test #2: Testing the ROV deployment and retrieval

9/18

Project Proposal completed

9/9

Field test #1: Familiarize new members with the ASV and ensure that all existing systems are still operational

Last Updated: Dec. 11, 2017
On Budget

Total Cost

Spare parts are include in the total projected cost separate from the 10% margin. The project is still on budget due to the generous support from SOEST and ARL for covering some costs. The team is actively looking for funding opportunities to meet the projected cost.

Team Kanaloa, named after the Hawaiian god of the ocean, was formed as a VIP team during the summer of 2016 to compete in the 2016 Maritime RobotX Challenge. Being a part of the VIP program, Kanaloa is open to students of all disciplines and class standings in order to foster professional growth and develop core engineering competencies within its undergraduate students. The team is comprised of students ranging from freshman to doctoral candidates in four different majors: Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, and Computer Science. This allows for peer mentorship, the ability to develop core competency over multiple semesters, and the opportunity for students to develop and learn skills outside of their chosen major. In the team’s second year, Kanaloa continue to strengthen its foundation by expanding the team’s marine robotics applications as a Registered Independent Organization (RIO) within the University of Hawaii, and as a research team.

Aricia Argyris - Project Manager

Aricia is the Project Manager for Team Kanaloa. She is a senior in mechanical engineering and joined Kanaloa in the Fall of 2016 due to her interest and prior experience in marine robotics, having participated in underwater robotics competitions throughout intermediate and high school. On the team, she previously served as Project Manager of a subteam tasked with the creation of a robotic arm for the “Detect and Deliver” task at the 2016 Maritime RobotX Challenge. With her previous project management experience and her familiarity with Team Kanaloa’s work and underwater robotics, she was selected as the Project Manager for the 2017-2018 school year. Aricia’s responsibilities include managing the team’s time budget to ensure that the team stays on schedule. She also takes on the general role of a teamcaptain, acting as the main administrative point-of-contact for the team, planning and facilitating team meetings, and ensuring members’ compliance of the team contract.

Michael Huang - Finance Manager

Michael is the Finance Manager for Team Kanaloa. Michael is a senior in mechanical engineering and is one of the founding members of Team Kanaloa, first joining in the summer of 2016. He initially joined the team due to his interest and prior experience in robotics, such as VEX and FIRST. During his time on the team, Michael was a part of the Surface subteam and Locomotion subsystem where he dealt with propulsion and mounting. Principally, Michael is, and continues to be, the lead of the Finance team. Michael’s responsibilities are to seek funding opportunities, to manage any monies awarded to the project, oversee all future expenditures and reimbursements, and manage the website.

Kai Jones - System Integrator

Kai is the Systems Integrator for Team Kanaloa. Kai is a senior pursuing a degree in mechanical engineering and a returning member for Team Kanaloa from the Spring 2017 term. Previously a team member for the locomotion subsystem, he was tasked with developing an arduino code to manually control the ASV using a remote control. As a result, Kai cooperated with the hardware, algorithms, and locomotion subsystems to ensure his code would work well with the entire system. With his experience in working with several subsystems, he was chosen as the Systems Integrator. Kai’s responsibilities are to ensure that the components of each subsystem work together as a whole.

Andrew Nguyen - Hardware Interoperability

Andrew is the current Hardware Interoperability Subsystem Lead. He is a senior in mechanical engineering who joined Team Kanaloa with an interest in robotics. He intends to gain valuable knowledge and experience pertaining to marine robotics, specifically in the hardware aspect. Throughout this project and this team, he strives to gain invaluable skills that can be applied toward future projects and a future career. Andrew was previously a member of the Hawaii Space Flight Laboratory as a Mechanical Engineering Intern and later a Satellite Mechatronics Assistant. He brings prior knowledge pertaining to hardware integration and computer aided designs. Andrew’s responsibilities include overseeing the selection of hardware, such as sensors and actuators, and ensuring that they can be incorporated successfully on the ASV.

Ryan Roque - Arm & Algorithms

Ryan is the Algorithms Subsystem Lead. He is also a senior in mechanical engineering who joined Team Kanaloa in order to gain more experience and knowledge in hardware and software integration. With the planning and rigor behind a robotics project, he hopes to apply this experience to other projects in the near future. Ryan’s responsibilities are, but not limited, to overseeing the development of the deployment Arm and compatibility of algorithms and code used to control the ASV.

Johnny Pham - Power

Johnny is the Energy Subsystem Lead. He is a junior in mechanical engineering who joined Team Kanaloa due to his interest in marine robotics and to gain more experience and knowledge in hardware and software integration. His goal is to use the skills he gains from this project and apply it to other projects and a future career. Johnny’s responsibilities are to ensure that the energy from the batteries running the ASV are sufficient and the that amount of energy required for the ASV does not exceed what can be supplied.

Chauncey Tom - Safety

Chauncey is the Safety Lead. He is a senior studying electrical engineering. Chauncey’s responsibilities are to ensure that the team meets all safety requirements and keep the safety system on the ASV up to date and operational.