US Navy's Underwater Fish-Like Drone Revealed
- 10 years ago
The latest underwater drone created for the United States Navy is designed to look like and mimic the movement of a bluefin tuna fish.
Many new robotic technologies are based on how animals move in the wild.
The latest drone created for the United States Navy is an underwater spy vehicle designed to mimic the look and movement of a large fish.
The robot is called GhostSwimmer, and is the latest development from the Navy’s Silent Nemo project which seeks to develop unmanned, biometric vehicles for use underwater.
Since it doesn’t use a propeller to move like most submarine robots, it will be harder to detect when it is being used to spy in enemy waters, or patrol American maritime borders.
GhostSwimmer uses fins and a tail to move quietly through the water just like a real fish.
Project lead Jerry Lademan is quoted as saying: “This is an attempt to take thousands of years of evolution—what has been perfected since the dawn of time—and try to incorporate that into a mechanical device.”
At approximately five feet long and almost 100 pounds, the robot is capable of operating at depths up to 300 feet.
The prototype was tested successfully last week at the Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek-Fort Story in Virginia.
It can be remotely controlled by a joystick, or programmed to swim by itself.
Many new robotic technologies are based on how animals move in the wild.
The latest drone created for the United States Navy is an underwater spy vehicle designed to mimic the look and movement of a large fish.
The robot is called GhostSwimmer, and is the latest development from the Navy’s Silent Nemo project which seeks to develop unmanned, biometric vehicles for use underwater.
Since it doesn’t use a propeller to move like most submarine robots, it will be harder to detect when it is being used to spy in enemy waters, or patrol American maritime borders.
GhostSwimmer uses fins and a tail to move quietly through the water just like a real fish.
Project lead Jerry Lademan is quoted as saying: “This is an attempt to take thousands of years of evolution—what has been perfected since the dawn of time—and try to incorporate that into a mechanical device.”
At approximately five feet long and almost 100 pounds, the robot is capable of operating at depths up to 300 feet.
The prototype was tested successfully last week at the Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek-Fort Story in Virginia.
It can be remotely controlled by a joystick, or programmed to swim by itself.