Author Type

Graduate Student

Date of Award

2001

Document Type

Thesis

Publication Status

Version of Record

Submission Date

October 2026

Thesis/Dissertation Advisor [Chair]

Holappa, Kenneth W.

Abstract

When a control system for an Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) requires thrust, it is common to apply a simplified model to estimate the force generated. Even though this model takes into account several parameters, it will never recover the real value. Our challenge is to directly measure the force, in real time, from the tunnel thrusters used in the positioning control of the Mini AUV known as Morpheus. Therefore, a force sensor system has been designed, optimized, machined and tested, that supports the thruster assembly. The sensor implements strain gages to measure the deformation in a beam. To optimize the capabilities of the sensor, a finite elements analysis has been run. The sensor has been fabricated and tested to determine the static and dynamic characteristics. This thesis discusses the design implementation, optimization, fabrication and testing of the force sensor. The discussion begins with an overview of the problem, then explains the fabrication, optimization, testing and concludes with recommendation for future work.

Extent

81 p.

Comments

College of Engineering and Computer Science|FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection|Thesis (M.S.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2001.|College of Engineering and Computer Science

Identifier

FADT12745

Format

pdf

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