Mechanical design and development aspects of a small AUV - Maya

Abstract

This paper contains a description of the mechanical design route that was adopted in building a small AUV (Autonomous Underwater Vehicle). At the outset, it is decided to follow a set of guidelines that defined a broad set of specifications that featured safety, low weight, small length, large mission time, easy-to-use, application specific, and most importantly low cost. How closely did we arrive at this desired set of specifications? The paper will address the most important design issues, lessons learned, and problems that remain for further development.