Autonomous Ocean-Crossing Robots Launched

Robotics Science
Autonomous Ocean-Crossing Robots Launched

Here’s a clip of Liquid Robotics founder and CTO Roger Hine talking, at the most recent Bay Area Maker Faire, about the innovative design of his company’s Wave Glider robot boat, which converts the up-and-down motion of waves at the surface into energy for propulsion. More technical details are available on Liquid Robotics’ site.

YouTube player

On November 17, Liquid Robotics launched four Wave Gliders from San Francisco, and are currently streaming data from several on-board instruments, at a resolution of one or two reports per minute, in near-real-time, via the Iridium satellite network. Those data are freely available here.

All four Wave Gliders are bound for Hawaii, where they will split into two pairs, one of which will head to Japan, and the other to Australia. IEEE Spectrum is reporting that Liquid Robotics “aims to break the Guinness world record for longest unmanned ocean voyage” with the trip, though I have not been able to confirm that Guinness actually has such a record currently established, nor what it may be. [Thanks, Glen!]

More:
Record-vying transatlantic robot submarine at sea

What will the next generation of Make: look like? We’re inviting you to shape the future by investing in Make:. By becoming an investor, you help decide what’s next. The future of Make: is in your hands. Learn More.

Tagged

I am descended from 5,000 generations of tool-using primates. Also, I went to college and stuff. I am a long-time contributor to MAKE magazine and makezine.com. My work has also appeared in ReadyMade, c't – Magazin für Computertechnik, and The Wall Street Journal.

View more articles by Sean Michael Ragan
Discuss this article with the rest of the community on our Discord server!

ADVERTISEMENT

Escape to an island of imagination + innovation as Maker Faire Bay Area returns for its 16th iteration!

Prices Increase in....

Days
Hours
Minutes
Seconds
FEEDBACK