Little Something I've been working on...

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  • TechnoD11
    Ensign
    • Mar 2018
    • 19

    Little Something I've been working on...

    Hello all, new member here so be gentle!
    Been working on a project for a little while and thought I would drop a photo of progress so far :)
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    TechnoD11
  • He Who Shall Not Be Named
    Moderator
    • Aug 2008
    • 12254

    #2
    OK. Pretty picture. Now what?

    David
    Who is John Galt?

    Comment

    • The Boattrainman
      Commander
      • Mar 2016
      • 443

      #3
      Yeah, what is it? Tech exercise or something you are building. Impressive pic.
      ''We're after men, and I wish to God I was with them........!''

      Comment

      • TechnoD11
        Ensign
        • Mar 2018
        • 19

        #4
        This is a scale model Los Angeles Class Submarine with the ASDS sub (see this if unfamiliar: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advanc...elivery_System) .
        Approx. 48" length once completed.

        I've been working on this project for roughly two years. This will be a fully functional unit, but not in the traditional sense. This submarine is equipped with a live video feed from the sail. Submarine is equipped with multiple closed-loop control systems via encoders and rotary potentiometers, controlled by an Arduino Mega. The ASDS submarine is attached to the primary submarine via a spoolable tether and carries Serial/Video feeds (max dive depth/tether length = 30 feet). ASDS contains the radios and has its own drive motor for speed matching the primary submarine. Uses a piston diving system similar to those provided by engel but with a smoother ballast tube and stabilizing rod, which allows for more energy-efficient ballast control.
        Also has a secondary control system that can override the primary system in event of arduino mega failure/water penetration into one of the airtight sections.

        Sub is controlled via ground station software currently in development (written in C#). Will display submarine information such as drive RPM, depth, Vbat, flood detection, plane positions, and sub orientation. Actual HMI is a Saitek X52 joystick.

        As for progress, CAD is roughly 90% complete, software is 50%, construction is 25%. I have more photos/screengrabs I can post, I'll get them up here once I have the opportunity.

        Cheers!
        TechnoD11

        Comment

        • He Who Shall Not Be Named
          Moderator
          • Aug 2008
          • 12254

          #5
          Most ambitious (is this your first foray into r/c submarine?). Looking forward to those pictures.

          David
          The Horrible
          Who is John Galt?

          Comment

          • The Boattrainman
            Commander
            • Mar 2016
            • 443

            #6
            Can't wait to see all that stuffed into a sub 50 inch model........incredible!

            Rob

            PS Not that I understood it all in the first place................
            ''We're after men, and I wish to God I was with them........!''

            Comment

            • type7
              Lieutenant Commander
              • Apr 2009
              • 152

              #7
              Interesting...trying to do all that at once, think you will be putting out a lot of fires. I would break it down to a lot of small items that are tested and proven well beforehand.

              Comment

              • RCSubGuy
                Welcome to my underwater realm!
                • Aug 2009
                • 1768

                #8
                Looks to be a dry-hull boat. You've calculated precise center of buoyancy with all components, allowing fudge factors for various operational environments? I see very little margin for error in your design. Ambitious, for sure.

                Comment

                • TechnoD11
                  Ensign
                  • Mar 2018
                  • 19

                  #9
                  Been real busy, sorry for the delay. Uploaded some more screengrabs and photos. See here:

                  Admittedly some of these photos are not great - I'll try to take some better ones as the project progresses.

                  To answer some questions:
                  - yes, this is my first go at building a submarine. Not my first large, technical project however. I fully expect that there will be some unexepcted issues. Hopefully they are such that fixes can be done without any major hassle, but we'll see!
                  - testing is being done on a per-subsystem level. for example, the encoding system is working properly.
                  - Calculations have been done (and are being updated). From these, CG and CoB should line up within margin of trimming right at the center of the ballast (around the piston position in the CAD screengrabs), with CG below CoB.
                  - much of this is designed to be built with minimal machining time. many parts are 3D printed using carbon fiber PLA. epoxy sealants are used on parts that need to be waterproofed. Only difficult machining bit is the aluminum sealing discs (which contacts the O rings), which need to be waterjet.

                  Cheers,
                  TechnoD11


                  Comment

                  • type7
                    Lieutenant Commander
                    • Apr 2009
                    • 152

                    #10
                    Here is something to consider- in practice you will want to open the sub up before and after, everytime you run it. Ease of access is as important as strong and sturdy.

                    Comment

                    • TechnoD11
                      Ensign
                      • Mar 2018
                      • 19

                      #11
                      Hey All, it's been...over a year! where does the time go??

                      So, this sub project, it's kinda almost done!:


                      It's been one heck of a project. I decided to just buckle down and build this thing, then come back to you all when I had some results. The above photo is a bit out of date actually, the front bulkhead and fore dive planes/servo have all been completed (I had them removed at the time for testing), but they look like this:


                      I've got literally hundreds of photos and video, I'll be putting together a full album of the build progress when it's finished. I'm shooting for the first dive at the end of July, pending any software issues. For now, have some assorted photos from construction. I'll take any questions you've got - for starters, the ease of access comment from way back: this is a 'dry hull' boat, in a loose sense. there is a single polycarbonate tube (seen being machined below) that seals against the o ring bulkheads. Some of these sections are flooded, others are dry - see this marked photo:


                      And for those assorted photos:


                      Cheers!
                      TechnoD11

                      Comment

                      • TechnoD11
                        Ensign
                        • Mar 2018
                        • 19

                        #12
                        ...That polycarb tube photo that I totally didn't forget to attach. My bad!

                        Comment

                        • He Who Shall Not Be Named
                          Moderator
                          • Aug 2008
                          • 12254

                          #13
                          Now, there is one hell of a pile of Craftsmanship. Just Wow! When you first posted that computer generated phantom-view I was skeptical -- so many before you announce beginning of an ambitious project, but are never heard from again once they realize the magnitude of their goal and the limit of their ability. You, on the other hand, have followed through. Most laudable, sir!

                          David
                          Who is John Galt?

                          Comment

                          • trout
                            Admiral
                            • Jul 2011
                            • 3545

                            #14
                            I have also become cynical of people that use a computer drawing and say they will build the drawing. Heck, many even buy stuff and never push through and give up. The one statement you made " I decided to just buckle down and build this thing" is a key factor to a successful building of a working submarine. Just keep plugging at it. I had wished you would have posted your progress along the way. We all would have learned from the successes and failures that you went through and improved the knowledge pool along the way. It is tough to go back and remember all that you go through to get where you are (at least it is with me).
                            Anyways, excellent looking submarine. I do have some questions, in particular the piston. The photo with the 85T gear, how is that assembly down?
                            Peace,
                            Tom
                            If you can cut, drill, saw, hit things and swear a lot, you're well on the way to building a working model sub.

                            Comment

                            • RCSubGuy
                              Welcome to my underwater realm!
                              • Aug 2009
                              • 1768

                              #15
                              Kudos! Wow! All of those electronics makes me itch just thinking about trying to diagnose an issue! And I thought that Engel was bad!

                              Can't wait to see it in operation!


                              Bob

                              Comment

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