MARK I Robot

Abstract

This film shows an autonomous robot in action. 'I'he goal of this NRL research effort is to es tablish a tec hni cal base for an autonomous underwater robot. It is expected th at s uch a robo t would be able t o do on ly s imple ta s ks, but would b.e able to do them one or tvo ord ers of ma g nitud e c heaper than other methods. (The economy is mainly becau se it i s not necessary for a ship to standby on the surface). The robot vehicle would be progranuned at a base and proceed to its assigned destinati on on the floor of the ocean. It would then carry out its vork autonomously, without even a communications link. This project is concerned vith sof twar e rather than ha rdwar e. The Ma rk I Robot is a system designed to operate in the laboratory as a re sea rch tool. It is a simplified r obot , a first cut at providing the minimal intelligence necessary for an aut onomous unde rwat er r obot . The robot performed as expected, successfully carrying ou t the ta s k it vas assigne d.