Vertical motion simulation and analysis of USM underwater glider

This paper describes the mathematical model and analysis of motion in a vertical plane for USM underwater glider. The underwater glider is a highly efficient autonomous underwater vehicle which glides through the ocean water column in saw-tooth pattern. It uses buoyancy for propulsion by controlling ballast pump and internal moving mass. In this research work, we have designed the mathematical model and studied the motion characteristics of USM underwater glider. The simulation was programmed using Matlab and the results demonstrate the downward motion of USM underwater glider based on the longitudinal model for two different glide angles. The results show the position of glider, linear and angular velocities of the glider, angle of attack, position of internal moving mass and ballast rate. With the resulting glider behavior in this open-loop control output, we will extend the control approach in order to create an efficient biologically inspired control algorithm for an optimized USM underwater glider.