It must be the most advanced marine sensor equipment if it looks and behaves like a penguin, but it is not.
Quadroin (an autonomous underwater vehicle) is a 3D-printed, self-propelled machine that mimics a penguin to measure the properties and characteristics of oceanic eddies.
After watching more than $20,000 of his equipment go to the bottom of Pacific Ocean, Burkard Baschek developed the method.
A Nasa image showing the eddies below the oceans' surface. It shows the swirling pattern formed by phytoplankton blooms within the southern Atlantic Ocean. Photograph: Nasa/Zuma/ Rex/Shutterstock
Eddies are tiny ocean currents that other methods of research have not been able to capture. They are responsible for approximately 50% of all phytoplankton production. The marine food chain's base, phytoplankton as well as other marine plants like kelp or algal plankton produce 70% of the atmospheric oxygen.
Baschek, now the director of the German Oceanographic Museum, in Stralsund's northern port, states that every fourth breath a human takes is dependent on these small ocean eddies.
Although they are important, eddies are not well understood by the scientific community. Some are only 10m across and have a lifespan of 12 hours. This makes them a challenge for ocean observation. There are very few measurements.
Baschek developed the first array of 20 sensors attached to a rope. This was to be towed behind ships to measure key oceanographic variables such as temperature, salinity and pressure. The rope would get caught on rocks, fishing nets, or containers and send all data to the seabed.
Baschek says that the only way to avoid these underwater hazards was to create a device that can measure without being tied to any rope.
A gentoo penguin. The team discovered that the birds' shape was the best model to make the Quadroin the most streamlined possible. Photograph: Xinhua/Rex/Shutterstock
Rudolf Bannasch, a Berlin-based bionics specialist, and his team at EvoLogics found the solution. They specialize in bionics that are based on natural evolutionary. Baschek had a penguin in mind, and Bannasch was able to provide the solution.
Bannasch says that penguins have the best streamlining characteristics. Baschek wanted to know if penguins can be wirelessly navigated underwater and communicate with each other. His research has shown that penguins are 20-30% more streamlined than any system designed in a laboratory.
The first Quadroin prototype was completed in April. Its name comes from quadro after the four propellers which move the AUV. A penguin made its maiden voyage on a lake near Berlin. The quadroin can reach speeds of 8 knots (9.2 mph) and is powered by the same sensors as a rope. However, the Quadroin can move freely in the water and avoid obstructions to a depth of 150 meters.
Scientists have been baffled by the fact that eddies need to be measured at multiple locations simultaneously. Bannasch and his collaborators are currently creating two more artificial penguins to act as a swarm. They would swim in unison, communicating with one another and swimming in unison.
Bannasch says that we developed the first singing underwater modems to allow the Quadroins to transmit and receive chirping signals comparable to dolphins.
Burkard Baschek and the artificial penguin that he developed. It can jump up to 150m and avoid obstacles. Photograph by Florian Bttner/Hereon
The robo-penguins, which are a metre long, can transmit data to one another and to a research ship. Artificial intelligence is being used by the company to enable smart group behaviour and decision making. The Quadroins will know what each measurement means and what next steps to take.
Although the Quadroins were designed to monitor rapidly changing oceanic processes, they can also be used to survey areas where other vehicles cannot go, such as under sea ice and in shallow water. These vehicles can be stored in docking stations, and used to conduct regular research missions during storms that make it difficult for vessels to leave the port. Baschek said that this happens almost every day in the North Sea.
Quadroins cost approximately 80,000 (69,000) per piece, but that is about the same price as hiring a fully-equipped research vessel for one day. Other high-performance AUVs, which are more expensive and less versatile, are also much more costly. Quadroins could make remote marine research more affordable for universities, research institutes, and oceanographic companies that don't have large budgets.
The artificial penguins also have a last trick to avoid them sinking to the bottom of ocean: If the electronics fail, and the sensors go black, they will float.
