SurfAAV: Design and Implementation of a Novel Multimodal Surfing Aquatic-Aerial Vehicle

Despite significant advancements in the research of aquatic-aerial robots, existing configurations struggle to efficiently perform underwater, surface, and aerial movement simultaneously. In this paper, we propose a novel multimodal surfing aquatic-aerial vehicle, SurfAAV, which efficiently integrates underwater navigation, surface gliding, and aerial flying capabilities. Thanks to the design of the novel differential thrust vectoring hydrofoil, SurfAAV can achieve efficient surface gliding and underwater navigation without the need for a buoyancy adjustment system. This design provides flexible operational capabilities for both surface and underwater tasks, enabling the robot to quickly carry out underwater monitoring activities. Additionally, when it is necessary to reach another water body, SurfAAV can switch to aerial mode through a gliding takeoff, flying to the target water area to perform corresponding tasks. The main contribution of this letter lies in proposing a new solution for underwater, surface, and aerial movement, designing a novel hybrid prototype concept, developing the required control laws, and validating the robot's ability to successfully perform surface gliding and gliding takeoff. SurfAAV achieves a maximum surface gliding speed of 7.96 m/s and a maximum underwater speed of 3.1 m/s. The prototype's surface gliding maneuverability and underwater cruising maneuverability both exceed those of existing aquatic-aerial vehicles.