Reading: From "God" to "Below Sea", the emergence of underwater robots as a new form of robots has also broadened the field for the development of artificial intelligence, and as a new direction of development, it should also be "great."
Once more you open the door
And you're here in my heart
And my heart will go on and on
- "My heart will goon"
April 14, 1912 is a sad day. The Titanic sailed from Southampton, England, passing through Cherbourg-Octeville in France and Ireland (in this case, the British). Queenstown was renamed Cobh in 1849. The planned destination was New York, USA, and the maiden voyage of the Dreamliner began.
However, when the Titanic hit an iceberg during the voyage, it caused the most serious maritime accident in peacetime and it was the most known shipwreck so far. A total of 1502 people were killed.
The last photo before the Titanic wreck (1912)
Nearly a hundred years later, RMS Titanic formed a team of scientists to conduct underwater exploration of the Titanic. The team of scientists used several underwater robots to examine the wreckage, taking thousands of photos and hours of video. Titanic's wreckage is now lying quietly 2.5 miles (approximately 4,000 meters) of water. A high-resolution photograph shows the bow of the Titanic. The fence and anchor are clearly visible.
Underwater robot photographed with bow and anchor
A few days ago, Prof. Pierre of the University of East Anglia in the United Kingdom used several “marine gliders†to achieve the “Voice of the Sea†soundings in the North Atlantic Ocean and the Southern Ocean. Through rapid and covert actions and only a slight noise, they could Underwater silently walk through.
It can travel a few thousand kilometers in a few months, during which it can record the sound of fish and other marine organisms and provide data support for scientists to research and protect marine life. The Ocean Glider communicates with ground scientists through satellites, and the collected data help to help marine scientists draw the ocean's ecological spectrum.
From the "superiority" to "below the sea", the emergence of underwater robots as a new form of robots has also broadened the field for the development of artificial intelligence, and as a new direction of development, it should also be "great."
The "Blue Ocean" in the field of deep sea competition
In recent years, driven by the drone market, underwater intelligent robot products have also begun to emerge, and have been widely used in resource survey sampling, salvage and military applications. In particular, many underwater robots debuted at the High-tech Fair recently displayed not only their technologies but also their potential and potential for development.
As the field of vision gradually shifts from the sky to the sea to the sea, Ke Ming, an analyst of the smart relativity theory, believes that the development of underwater robots has great prospects. With the gradual completion of artificial intelligence technology and robot hardware, the "deep sea competition" of underwater robots will become increasingly fierce.
1. The "Blue Ocean Market" has not yet been fully developed
Underwater robots have always given people an unpredictable impression, and they have not yet entered the public's view. This contrasts sharply with the boom in the air drone market. In fact, the underwater robot market is a high-quality market with huge capacity and huge potential. However, for the time being, it has not yet been fully developed and the consumer base is relatively large.
Since the first unmanned remotely operated submersible was introduced in 1953, underwater robots have been active in the military industry or in the laboratories of scientific research institutes. The United States is the first country in the world to develop underwater robots and has the most advanced technology.
A team from Stanford University developed an underwater humanoid robot called OceanOne. Its back has a computing unit, battery, and thruster. It can swim like a real person, is 5 feet tall, and uses artificial intelligence and tactile feedback. The system can transfer the feeling of the robot holding something to the terminal device.
Underwater robot "OceanOne" developed by Stanford University
Judging from the development of the industry, the total market of underwater robots is very impressive. It can be roughly divided into consumer-level and enterprise-level markets. Especially in the enterprise-level market, many underwater jobs that are high-risk, complex, and unmanageable by manpower will gradually Replaced by underwater robots.
According to an announcement released recently by market research company IDC, the global robot and drone market will reach US$103.1 billion in 2018, an increase of 22.1% over 2017. The robot market will become hotter, and underwater robots will become new in the robotics industry. The application scenario will have more opportunities.
Compared to drones, which are relatively mature in technology and products and have been accepted by the consumer market, underwater robots have to be developed in terms of technology and product form, and the prices of the products are also relatively expensive. However, from the perspective of market structure, there are not many players in the domestic market of underwater robots, and there are not even ten excellent players in the domestic market. It is no giants that dominate the market. The market is still in its infancy and has not yet been fully developed.
2. Satisfying the needs of ocean exploration is promising
In terms of traditional concepts, the applications of underwater robots are more military and industrial. They mainly implement tasks such as exploration, exploitation of seabed resources and submarine rescue.
However, with the development of technologies such as the Internet, artificial intelligence, and intelligent manufacturing, and the improvement of people’s living standards, the public’s demand for detection in the underwater field is also growing. The market of underwater intelligent robots is gradually moving toward commercial Expansion of civil and other fields. Followed by, is a variety of forms of underwater submarine products, such as the relatively C-side of the various forms of entertainment, science and education film shooting consumer-level underwater robots.
Nowadays, underwater intelligent robots have begun to be known to the general public. In addition to being able to detect underwater movements, they are equipped with techniques such as vision, perception, artificial intelligence, and automatic balance. The speed, dive depth, and clearness of the shooting scene Degrees have been greatly improved, and they can already meet the unmanned demand of the basic seabed.
3. Wide range of applications
From the perspective of market performance of underwater robots, its application areas are also quite extensive. For example, in aquaculture, many of the harvested marine grazing farms in China still use human resources and their tools are quite primitive. For farmers, they not only have high labor intensity, low production efficiency, but also have high harvesting costs. High security risk. The rise and development of underwater robots can help fishermen solve these problems easily.
Underwater robots also have a lot to do in the field of pipeline cleaning. Because of the uneven distribution of population in our country, the urban pipeline is facing problems such as blockage and disrepair. If underwater robots are used for pipeline inspection, the pipelines that need to be repaired can be accurately positioned, which avoids the large-scale digging of the ground and the way of reinstallation, which saves a lot of manpower and time and ensures the normal operation of urban traffic.
At the entertainment consumer end, underwater robots also have a very wide market. With the rise of diving sports, China has 150 million people with a certificate of dive. More and more people are interested in deep-water sports, so it also brings opportunities for the C-end market, such as aquariums and playgrounds. In science and technology museums and other entertainment venues, underwater robots are required to monitor the water environment and provide real-time information feedback to prevent the occurrence of drowning and casualties. In the area of ​​personal consumption, small underwater robots can also be used for underwater shooting, which is easy to carry.
"Going to the sea" is an illusion or an industry outlet?
Nowadays, the speed of development of the underwater robot industry has been significantly improved. With the expansion of its application scenario, more and more companies are beginning to enter this field. However, as far as the domestic situation is concerned, even if the entry is relatively early, the intruders have not yet stratified in terms of product performance, technology, market share, etc., and the entrepreneurs are still at a preliminary stage of development. Analyst Ke Ming, a smart relativity analyst, believes that whether it is an illusion or an outlet, it still needs to solve several problems.
1. Although the industry is clear, C-side landing is still a problem
At present, the development of underwater robots on the market has begun to assist the C-end direction. However, even if AI is added, domestic underwater intelligent robots will still have considerable difficulty if they really want to finish landing directly to the C-terminus.
In fact, there are still problems such as buoyancy, waterproofness, and power propulsion in the landing of the C-side of an underwater robot. The structure of the underwater robot requires a relatively high level of structure and requires strong technical support.
On the other hand, although consumer-level underwater intelligent robots have begun to become popular in China and are mainly used for diving, sea fishing, and underwater photography, domestic brands of underwater robots have never been able to be used at home and abroad. The high-end civilian market is favored by users. After all, its application space in a dangerous ocean, whether it is the use of the environment or the service life must be subjected to harsh tests.
Therefore, although the underwater robot industry is infiltrating our lives through all aspects. However, due to the high technical barriers, difficulty in research and development, and long cycle, even if some products fail to meet practical standards, most of the underwater robot products are more inclined to the B-side and the price is relatively expensive. If the industry really wants to infiltrate the C-end market, it still needs to break through the price threshold and use the threshold. However, it is regrettable that underwater robots that are currently under 10,000 yuan and that are easy to carry are still not on the market.
2. "Three major problems" are difficult to break
For the B-side market, it is not "perfect". Underwater robots in the B-side market also have many problems that need to be overcome.
The first thing to solve is the sealing problem. As a long-time underwater robot, there are many electronic components such as a circuit and a motor inside. However, in the current industry, the sealability is ensured by the tightness of the reinforced device housing and the internal seal chamber, but the effect is not satisfactory. .
The second is to improve the underwater balance ability of the robot. According to the Archimedes principle in physics, an object immersed in a liquid or gas is subjected to an upward buoyancy effect, and the buoyancy force is equal to the gravity of the liquid discharged by the object. The buoyancy is an important problem that the underwater robot needs to solve. However, this not only requires the developer to carry out accurate calculations, but also requires a relatively fine gravity layout of the equipment, and even every line in the equipment must be carefully considered. You have to go through dozens of tests.
Finally, as an underwater robot, it also has higher requirements for communication equipment, cameras, thrusters and other equipment. After all, the most basic job of underwater robots is to replace people diving into the water and photograph the underwater situation through the camera. In the process, they also need the cooperation of lights, and then the data will be transmitted back to the related equipment on the water through the wireless device.
In general, both the B-side and C-side underwater robots still have a long way to go, but they can also see their aquaculture, water pollution detection, education and municipal pipeline inspections, and civil industries. There is still great prospect.
After all, "Save the Titanic" and listen to "The Sound of the Sea". Underwater robots play an irreplaceable role.
Guangdong Ojun Technology Co., Ltd. , https://www.ojunconnector.com