I am planning to build a submarine from scratch, I know there are plenty of kits out there, but where is the fun of that? :D
Budget is limited but since I am college student, I may be able to get some components for a lower price.
I still do not know how I will control it. I would really like to use rf, but I am afraid that would be way over my league.
For the hull I will use PVC.
For the pumps I have compiled this list:
Rule (http://www.rivermarinesupply.com/xcart/catalog/product_10712_Rule_Mini_Pump_360_GPH.html)
attwood (http://www.thefind.com/sports/browse-attwood-v1250-bilge-pump)
Seachoice (http://www.rivermarinesupply.com/xcart/catalog/product_10615_Seachoice_Bilge_Pumps_600_1000_1500_AND_2000_GPH_Models.html)
I need some advice on those :p
If I decide to put a camera. Can I still use RF ? I want to control de sub from a computer.
I am sure I will have more questions as time goes on :D
Cool.
A word of advice: underwater-RF is a b*tch- you MAY be able to find a solution for very low depths, but without an antenna on the surface you'll NEVER achieve decent data-throughput.
Basically: Forget about RF from below-surface to surface, if you dont want to write your bachelor thesis on the matter ;)
You'll also have to think about how to communicate with your PC- I'd suggest USB.
Buy a demo-board with the µController you intend to use, and make it exchange data with a Host-Application running on your desktop... I'm currently messing with an ARM Cortex M3 (STM32f103); the demoboard (for experimenting) cost ~80€, but came with display, µC, accelerometer, joystick, SD-slot, etc. The µC alone costs <10€ a piece, programmer/debugger devices cost <40€. Devices targeted at the hobbyist- market may be cheaper and still sufficient for your purposes (search for AVR, PIC).
I could give more specific advice if I knew about your skills (esp. soldering and C-programming).
Ultra-sound is the best cheap way to do sub to surface communications. You can use several of them, each in a different frequency range to transmit quite a lot of data with some very simple error correcting protocols.
As for the pumps; your going to run into power limitations. The bigger your batteries, the greater the volume of your sub and the more power you need just to propel it. What sort of propulsion system are you planning on using?
Cool.
A word of advice: underwater-RF is a b*tch- you MAY be able to find a solution for very low depths, but without an antenna on the surface you'll NEVER achieve decent data-throughput.
Basically: Forget about RF from below-surface to surface, if you dont want to write your bachelor thesis on the matter ;)
I will stay away from rf then (for now :D ).
You'll also have to think about how to communicate with your PC- I'd suggest USB.
Buy a demo-board with the µController you intend to use, and make it exchange data with a Host-Application running on your desktop... I'm currently messing with an ARM Cortex M3 (STM32f103); the demoboard (for experimenting) cost ~80€, but came with display, µC, accelerometer, joystick, SD-slot, etc. The µC alone costs <10€ a piece, programmer/debugger devices cost <40€. Devices targeted at the hobbyist- market may be cheaper and still sufficient for your purposes (search for AVR, PIC).
If I use USB, the maximum range would be approximately 5 meters, right?
I could give more specific advice if I knew about your skills (esp. soldering and C-programming).
I am very comfortable with C, can't say the same for soldering - but hey, practice makes perfect :D
Ultra-sound is the best cheap way to do sub to surface communications. You can use several of them, each in a different frequency range to transmit quite a lot of data with some very simple error correcting protocols.
Ultra-sound does seems perfect, but I have 0 knowledge on that. Maybe for a future version of the sub. :o
As for the pumps; your going to run into power limitations. The bigger your batteries, the greater the volume of your sub and the more power you need just to propel it. What sort of propulsion system are you planning on using?
Well, I was planning to use the bilge pumps as rudimentary propulsion system. As for power, I believe I have 2 viable options:
- Have a cable for communication (cat5) and another for power
- Have only one cable (cat5) and use power over ethernet.
Batteries do not make much sense now, since I will have to have a cable from the sub to the laptop.
Do you know how you're getting around that whole "water and circuits don't mix well" issue?