Magellan Autonomous Surface Vehicle
A project to create a robotic boat that will follow Magellan’s voyage around the world. A total trip of over 40,000 miles.
Background
In 1519, Magellan started voyage that would result in the first circumnavigation of the globe. The story of early explorers is fascinating to me as these people had no idea of exactly what they would face except that they would be on entirely on their own. Now I want to combine that spirit with my love of robotics to send a robot off on an intrepid journey of its own.
Project Requirements
- Fully autonomous navigation for duration of voyage
- Follows Magellan’s route around the world
- Completes voyage in 3 years or less
- Solar powered
- Satellite communcations
- Able to be launched and retrieved by a single person Detail project requirements are available here
Project Process
The scope of this project is large enough, I will work my way up in complexity of the project.
- Gen 1 - Basic vehicle with OTS electronics and software, testing in a pond
- Gen 2 - Hand built hull with dev board electronics and custom software, testing in mid-sized lake
- Gen 3 - Custom designed hull, custom electornics and software, redundant systems - testing in Great Lakes
- Gen 4 - Update to Gen 3 for final voyage