Towards Physical Underwater Robotic Assistance for Scuba Diver Movement in Confined Spaces

2026-10-01

AI Summary

This study addresses the challenge of divers maintaining safe distances within confined underwater spaces by proposing RADMCS, a novel wearable robotic system. Unlike conventional propulsion-assisted exoskeletons, this work pioneers an approach that integrates directional guidance with haptic feedback. The system perceives its environment via monocular depth estimation and employs underwater thrusters to deliver force feedback for movement guidance. Empirical evaluations demonstrate that merely 10% of maximum thrust is sufficient to effectively direct diver locomotion, thereby validating the feasibility and efficiency of the proposed system in real-world aquatic environments.

Abstract

Scuba divers are taught to control their depth to avoid rapid ascents and descents, which could result in serious injuries such as gas embolisms and barotrauma. However, many underwater tasks necessitate lateral control, maintaining distance between subsea structures such as coral reefs, submerged drilling instrumentation, or unexploded ordnance. In this work, we discuss a first-of-its-kind wearable robotic solution providing thruster-actuated directional guidance to a diver, as distinct from prior propulsive-assistance exoskeletons. We introduce ``Robotic Assisted Diver Movement in Confined Spaces'' (RADMCS), a wearable robot that assists divers in maintaining a fixed distance from subsea structures by leveraging perception techniques in monocular depth estimation and force-feedback from submersible thrusters to provide haptic feedback. Its small and compact form factor creates a foundational platform that could be expanded to include more sophisticated control and navigation behaviors. We present results from Institutional Review Board (IRB) in-water studies with eight human scuba diver participants on threshold sensitivity tests in both a closed-water swimming facility and ocean environments; distance-maintaining experiments in a closed-water facility; and form, fit, and function testing in the ocean. We demonstrate that relatively low thrust values (10 percent of maximum) allow robotic direction of a human's movement using the physical sensation of the robot's guidance.

Problem

• underwater robotics
• scuba diving
• confined spaces
• distance maintenance
• wearable robot

Innovation

• Wearable underwater robot
• Monocular depth estimation
• Haptic feedback
• Directional guidance
• Confined spaces