Underwater sub

Inspiration

Shaftless motor for ease of design and better view. Another major inspiration is to explore the underwater with sci-fi inspired tiny submarine.

What it does

Take people underwater without a diving suit, allowing people to breathe air and control the gadget themself. Can go up to 10 m deep. Mostly, it will be used as a tourist gadget for long-time underwater exploration in the shallow water zone.

How we built it

The design is built with Fusion360 and Solidworks. The manufacturing will be done using traditional manufacturing methods like casting and milling. The general cost will be focused on the shaftless motor system and detailed electrics implementation. To reduce the complexity of assembly, we design the product with small parts. For instance, the driving part is composed of six small parts with six motors, so customers can assemble the whole product easily.

Challenges we ran into

It is very hard to create innovative recreational gadgets especially when the market is filled with similar company designs. It is also very hard to design another product that can bring people a unique thrill since products like the hydrofoil board and underwater scooters were invented long ago. Also, when trying to locate the way how the gadgets move underwater (how to make sure they can move with enough precision, enough speed, and enough stability), we encounter problems like power supply, electronics (as to how to plan the wires), air&oxygen supply, how people enter&exit the gadget, how to connect the inner chamber, which is an attachable part, to the outer skeleton...

Accomplishments that we're proud of

The most remarkable part of our gadget is that it can sustain underwater for a long time, and it can move with very high freedom, giving users a very good experience underwater and allowing them to explore every place they want to be in the allowed depth.

What we learned

Innovation is very hard nowadays concerning keeping simplicity at the same time. However, it is still possible to make new stuff from existing ideas and designs. The other most important thing learned is how to efficiently use and place the space, and how to effectively place all functional parts.

What's next for Underwater sub

Now the design is too rough and general, no detailed implementations of electronics are made. So, the next step is to modify the design (like the flooring part above water that supplies oxygen and the inner chamber) to make them more realistic and easy to operate. In addition, the safety, power, and cost should be evaluated and polished.