Thales

Cyril Bouyer

Christophe Borel

Jean-Philippe Brunet

Benoît Theckes

Benoit Theckes

Eric Rouvier

A method for regulating the buoyancy of an underwater vehicle in such a way that it substantially exhibits a predetermined target buoyancy Fc when it is immersed in a volume of liquid delimited by a first surface and a second surface, along a vertical axis, the method includes starting from an initial buoyancy of the vehicle that keeps the vehicle at the level of the first surface, a first step of modifying the density of the vehicle so that it moves closer to the second surface, the first step being implemented as far as a second step of detecting the crossing, by the vehicle, of a predetermined non-zero threshold on distance with respect to the first surface, along the vertical axis, then a third step of modifying the density of the vehicle until the vehicle exhibits substantially the target buoyancy.

Method for controlling the buoyancy of a submarine vehicle

A method controlling a thruster of a marine vehicle is provided. The marine vehicle is at least partially submerged in a liquid and includes a body and a thruster including two propellers. Each propeller includes blades intended to tum about a rotation axis of said propeller. The method includes a step of low-speed maneuver controlling, during which the thruster is controlled in such a way that each propeller generates a flow directed toward the flow generated by the other propeller and reaching the flow generated by the other propeller.

Marine vehicle thruster control method

A method for controlling a thruster of a marine vehicle includes a body and a thruster mounted on the body of the vehicle, the vehicle being at least partially immersed in a liquid and moving with respect to the liquid along an axis of displacement in a direction of displacement and rotating about at least one axis of rotation perpendicular to the axis of displacement with a rotational speed, the thruster including an upstream propeller and a downstream propeller along the axis of displacement in the direction of displacement. The method including a stabilization step, in which the thruster is controlled such that the main axis of the upstream flow generated by the upstream propeller at a given instant t is an estimated main axis on which a position of a center of the downstream propeller, situated substantially on the axis of rotation of the downstream propeller, is estimated to be situated at a later instant t+dt at which the flow generated by the upstream propeller at the given instant t reaches the downstream propeller, the estimated main axis depending on the rotational speed of the vehicle.

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Sophia Antipolis, France

Cyril Bouyer