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model that allowed autonomous control to take place. Different experiments carried out in a water tank object-recovery
context demonstrated its feasibility and reliability. At this
moment, autonomous control was performed using visual
tracking and servoing techniques. Current research is focused
on the integration of new contact-based sensors: a force/
torque sensor and tactile pads would be a convenient combination to perform more robust autonomous underwater
grasping and manipulation. Moreover, new grippers and robot
hands (with more than two fingers) are now under exploration to provide improved dexterity and to progress toward
multipurpose manipulation in underwater domains.
Since March 2010, the three-year project RAUVI, partially
described in this article, became the core of a more challenging European project, named FP7-TRIDENT, which focuses
on cognitive marine robotics for multipurpose intervention
missions [20]. In addition, another Spanish coordinated and
funded project, TRITON, was started in January 2012 with
the main purpose of applying the results of RAUVI to real
autonomous intervention tasks at sea and eventually generating technological transfer.
Acknowledgments
This research was partly supported by Spanish Ministry of
Research and Innovation DPI2011-27977-C03 (TRITON
Project) and DPI2008-06548-C03 (RAUVI Project), by the
European Commission's Seventh Framework Programme
FP7/2007-2013 under grant agreement 248497 (TRIDENT
Project), by Foundation Caixa Castelló-Bancaixa PI.1B201117, and by Generalitat Valenciana ACOMP/2012/252.
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José Javier Fernández, Computer Science and Engineering
Department, University of Jaume-I, Spain. E-mail: fernandj@
uji.es.
Mario Prats, Computer Science and Engineering Department,
University of Jaume-I, Spain. E-mail: mprats@uji.es.
Pedro J. Sanz, Computer Science and Engineering Department,
University of Jaume-I, Spain. E-mail: sanzp@uji.es.
Juan Carlos García, Computer Science and Engineering
Department, University of Jaume-I, Spain. E-mail: garciaju@
uji.es.
Raul Marín, Computer Science and Engineering Department,
University of Jaume-I, Spain. E-mail: rmarin@uji.es.
Mike Robinson, CSIP Ltd., United Kingdom. E-mail: mr@csip.
co.uk.
David Ribas, Center for Underwater Robotics Research, University of Girona, Spain. E-mail: dribas@eia.udg.edu.
Pere Ridao, Center for Underwater Robotics Research, University of Girona, Spain. E-mail: pere@eia.udg.edu.
http://www.youtube http://www.co.uk
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of IEEE Robotics & Automation Magazine - December 2013
