University of Maryland Robot Wins International Competition

COLLEGE PARK, Md. (WUSA) - Some students at the University of Maryland are on auto-pilot this summer. Actually, they've invented a robot that can not only guide itself. It can swim.

It took 30 students with specialties in physics, computer programming, and aerospace engineering six months to design the robot named Tortuga II.

Graduate student Joseph Gland says, "just to be able to drive straight takes a lot of electrical, hardware, control theory, and good programming." Tortuga II was put to the test at an underwater competition in San Diego last week, going up against 25 teams from across the United States, Canada, India, and Japan.

Sophomore Andrew Dupree from Bowie worked on the sonar system. "One of the main aspects on the competition and one worth the most points is being able to locate a pinger and come back up.This was a great experience to be a part of." The Maryland Team has a huge advantage. They get to practice in a 25 foot deep tank at the Clark School of Engineering on campus. Normally it's used to simulate microgravity in space. The only other tank like it is at the Johnson Space Center in Houston.

During the ten day competition the team had three laptops die. They lost the main vehicle computer and busted a thruster, but still managed to win first place and a $7,000 prize - on just their second try.

Graduate Student Steve Moskovchenko is still on cloud nine.

"You build something, and you're watching it, and it's actually doing it. It was the longest four minutes-six seconds of my life, but so worth it." And he says the future looks bright for robots like Tortugo II.

"Any sort of underwater task - inspecting bridges, inspecting cables or pipelines, these things can do this."

The team is so energized from their victory that they're gearing up for another competition next month. This one will be on land.

The Robotics @ Maryland team would like to thank the following sponsors:

<i>James A Clark School of Engineering

<i> The Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

<i> The Institute for Systems Research

<i> The Department of Aerospace Engineering

<i> The Office of the VP for Research

<i>Memsense

<i> BAE Systems, E.K. Fox, and Apple