Scientific expedition members get ready to put Tansuo 4500, China’s autonomous underwater
vehicle, into the sea. (Photo/Shenyang Institute of Automation, Chinese Academy of
Sciences)
As China’s polar icebreaker and scientific research vessel Xuelong 2 returned to the home
port in Shanghai in late September after traveling 14,000 nautical miles for 79 days, the
country’s 12th Arctic scientific expedition was successfully completed, in which China’s self-
developed autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) delivered impressive performance.
Operated by Shao Gang and three other scientific expedition members, the AUV, known as
Tansuo 4500, completed scientific investigation tasks concerning sea ice-covered areas in the
high latitudes of the Arctic. This is the first time that Tansuo 4500 has performed scientific
tasks in the polar region and the first time that China has employed an AUV for near-seabed
scientific research in the high latitudes of the Arctic.
The valuable data collected by the AUV is expected to provide strong scientific support for
Arctic ecology protection.
Developed by the Shenyang Institute of Automation (SIA) under the Chinese Academy of
Sciences, Tansuo 4500 looks just like a large yellow fish and features a higher level of
automation than ordinary AUVs.
Compared with remotely-operated underwater robots, Tansuo 4500 doesn’t need to be
connected to the mother ship by cables, which means that it can realize autonomous
navigation and carry out detection without human intervention, said Li Yang, an associate
research fellow at the SIA, adding that it has a longer battery lifespan and its activity scope is
wider.
Considering the high-density sea ice-covered areas during the Arctic scientific expedition, the
scientific research team has creatively developed an under-ice AUV retrieval technology that
combines acoustic remote control and automatic guidance to ensure that Tansuo 4500 can
dive into the sea continuously and be withdrawn safely.
“We have also added an emergency beacon so as to locate the AUV accurately when it gets
stuck under the ice layers or its position is not visible to the naked eye,” Shao said.
Besides, the scientific research team has optimized the troubleshooting process of the AUV,
allowing it to independently evaluate its own condition and then make decisions accordingly.
Many areas of the polar region are covered by sea ice all year round, and it is an important
part of polar expeditions to investigate the characteristics of sea ice and sub-glacial waters.
Noting that polar scientific research has always been a key direction of the development of
underwater robots, Li Shuo, deputy head of the SIA, pointed out that six underwater robots of
four types from the institute have been employed in eight polar expeditions in recent years,
contributing significantly to China’s investigation into the polar regions.
According to Li Yang, AUVs are mainly assigned three tasks in polar expeditions, including
observing and detecting floating ice to learn about its thickness, condition and movements,
collecting data about waters, including the depth, temperature and salinity, as well as carrying
out fine exploration of seabed topography and landforms and searching for mineral resources
on the seabed on this basis.
Traditional sea ice surveys require drilling holes in the sea ice, which was not efficient and
could only collect a limited amount of data.
The AUV, however, is not affected by sea ice and can get to some areas beyond the reach of
human beings, conducting scientific investigations into wider and deeper areas for a longer
period of time.
It can collect sea samples more flexibly and accurately, guaranteeing higher quality and larger
number of samples.
Scientific expedition members can observe the underwater world in the polar regions through
the cameras, imaging sonar and other imaging devices installed on the AUV, Li Yang said.
Actively responding to the needs of the country, the SIA has been devoted to the development
of AUVs suitable for various application needs in recent years.
It has developed AUVs that can reach as deep as 11,000 meters below the sea surface, with
their ranges varying between several kilometers and several thousand kilometers.
In terms of main functions and performance indicators, China’s unmanned underwater robots
have reached the international advanced level, Li Yang pointed out.
AUVs are expected to develop toward higher intelligentization in the future, with stronger
adaptability to the environment and collaborative operation capabilities, according to experts.
