As a completely student-run project organization, the OSU Underwater Robotics Team works together to design a robot that is used in the international RoboSub Competition held in California every year. More than 50 teams from around the world are tasked with designing and building Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs) to navigate a course. With the COVID-19 pandemic forcing the cancellation of in-person meetings, the OSU Underwater Robotics Team has had to get creative on how to continue their work.
The three subteams – Software, Mechanical, and Electrical – meet once a week on their own and also meet with the entire team at the end of the week at the Center for Automotive Research (CAR). The subteams have switched completely to remote work due to COVID-19, which has created some challenges, especially when they cannot access the robot. One challenge is the organization of resources for the massive AUV project, “Puddles”, their current competition robot platform. As of early March, the subteams have completely moved all in-person meetings to Zoom virtual meetings. While there were some growing pains, all sub-teams have been able to meet weekly and members are able to access a recorded version of the full team update meeting every Sunday.
The Software team has been able to adapt to the virtual situation as well. Once the possibility of regular pool tests was ruled out, the Software team focused their efforts on making the simulation environment as sturdy as possible. Amazingly, the team is now able to test task code independently of water or even the robot. As we prepare for the RoboSub Competition, we appreciate staying virtually connected through Zoom meetings and look forward to providing updates on the outcome of the competition.
Unfortunately due to COVID-19, the in-person portion of RoboSub 2020 is cancelled however, there will still be a written portion of the competition. With classes ending and the team putting a new emphasis on simulation, the team hopes to be prepared for the best performance yet at RoboSub 2021.
For general information or sponsorship opportunities for the OSU Underwater Robotics Team, please contact corporaterelations@osu.edu or contact the team directly at osu.uwrt@gmail.com .

Puddles in the Simulator