Underwater remotely operated vehicle

Abstract

A remotely operated underwater vehicle system includes a hull having a front end and a tail positioned to the rear of the front end. The remotely operated underwater vehicle may include a first and second side thrust module configured to drive the vehicle in forward and reverse directions and removably connected to the hull, and a rear thrust module configured to drive the tail up and down and removably connected to the tail. The vehicle may include a tether and buoy to facilitate communication with a remote input device. A power source, such as a battery, may be positioned in the hull to power the vehicle and the buoy. The buoy may house a communication source configured to communicate with the input device. The tether is configured to transfer power and communication signals from the buoy to the hull. The buoy may float on a water surface to relay communication between the input device and the hull.

Having thus described the invention, we claim: 
     
         1 . A remotely operated underwater vehicle system comprising:
 a hull including a front end and a tail positioned to the rear of the front end;   a first side thrust module connected to a first side of the hull, the first side thrust module configured to drive the hull in a forward or reverse direction;   a second side thrust module connected to a second side of the hull, the first side thrust module configured to drive the hull in a forward or reverse direction;   a rear thrust module connected to the tail of the hull, the rear thrust module configured to drive the tail in an upward or downward direction, approximately perpendicular to the direction of the first and second side thrusters.   
     
     
         2 . The remotely operated underwater vehicle system of  claim 1 , wherein the first and second side thrust modules are removably connected to the hull. 
     
     
         3 . The remotely operated underwater vehicle system of  claim 2 , wherein the removable first side thrust module includes a multi-pin receptacle configured to engage pins on the hull to transfer power and control signals from the hull to the side thrust module. 
     
     
         4 . The remotely operated underwater vehicle system of  claim 1 , wherein the rear thrust module is removably connected from the hull. 
     
     
         5 . The remotely operated underwater vehicle system of  claim 1 , wherein the first side thrust module comprises a motor, a propeller, and a stabilizing fin. 
     
     
         6 . The remotely operated underwater vehicle system of  claim 5 , wherein the stabilizing fin is interchangeable to selectively connect a desired fin shape and size to the side thrust module. 
     
     
         7 . The remotely operated underwater vehicle system of  claim 1 , wherein the hull includes a tapered shape having a greatest height between the front end and the tail. 
     
     
         8 . The remotely operated underwater vehicle system of  claim 1  further comprising a camera positioned within the hull and directed to capture images exterior to the hull. 
     
     
         9 . A remotely operated underwater vehicle system comprising:
 a body comprising:
 a hull having a front end and a tail; 
 a first side thrust module connected to the hull, wherein the first side thrust module is configured to drive the underwater vehicle in a forward or reverse direction; and 
 a rear thrust module connected to the tail and configured to drive the tail in a direction approximately perpendicular to the forward and reverse direction; 
   a tether having a first end and a second end, the first end of the tether connected to the hull;   a buoy connected to the second end of the tether, the buoy including a communication source configured to communicate with an input device; and   wherein the tether is configured to transfer communication signals between the buoy to the body.   
     
     
         10 . The remotely operated underwater vehicle system of  claim 9 , wherein the buoy is configured to remotely communicate with an input device. 
     
     
         11 . The remotely operated underwater vehicle system of  claim 10 , wherein buoy is configured to communicate with the input device using Wi-Fi communication. 
     
     
         12 . The remotely operated underwater vehicle system of  claim 10 , wherein the buoy is configured to receive directional drive information from the input device and relay the same to the body. 
     
     
         13 . The remotely operated underwater vehicle system of  claim 10 , wherein the body further comprises a camera positioned within the hull and directed to capture images exterior to the hull. 
     
     
         14 . The remotely operated underwater vehicle system of  claim 13 , wherein the buoy is configured to receive video data from the camera and relay the video data to the input device over the    
     
     
         15 . The remotely operated underwater vehicle system of  claim 9 , wherein the first and second side thrust modules are removably connected to the hull. 
     
     
         16 . The remotely operated underwater vehicle system of  claim 15 , wherein the removable first side thrust module includes a multi-pin receptacle configured to engage pins on the hull to transfer power and control signals from the hull to the side thrust module. 
     
     
         17 . The remotely operated underwater vehicle system of  claim 9 , wherein the rear thrust module is removably connected from the hull. 
     
     
         18 . The remotely operated underwater vehicle system of  claim 9 , wherein the hull includes a tapered shape having a greatest height between the front end and the tail. 
     
     
         19 . The remotely operated underwater vehicle system of  claim 9  further comprising a power source located in the body.