water scooter design

[sal]

I am a design student at Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California. I am designing a product for divers, and input from real divers would help me immensely. Can I ask you a few questions? It should only take about 5 minutes.

When you go scuba diving, what do you do to navigate?

Do you ever get confused about what you are looking at when you are diving?

Have you ever hired a diving guide to take you to a certain spot to dive?

What was good or bad about the guide you hired?

Have you ever used an underwater scooter?

If so, which kind was good or bad about it?

What kind of handles did it have? What is difficult about it? Did it make you hurt
anywhere after a while? Where?

What is the best time of the day to dive if you want to see wildlife?

I am designing an underwater scooter for the Great Barrier Reef which is capable of following an underwater route via GPS. This route would take the diver on a tour of spots in the Great Barrier Reef. Regardless of the problem of GPS under water,what do you think about this idea in theory? Specifically along the lines of your own experiences, do you have any suggestions?

 

[MSilvia]

I think it's an interesting idea. How do you plan to overcome the limited ability of GPS signals to penetrate water?

Frankly, if you could just design a GPS that worked underwater, I'd be quite interested in one.

 

[aabond]

I second that. You'd have to trail a line with a bouy that contained the gps antenna. You would also have to calculate the actual position of the diver with regards to the length of the antenna cable going to the bouy and it's corresponding angle. Sounds like a great project, and probably very marketable if it works efficiently.

 

[MSilvia]

You would also have to calculate the actual position of the diver with regards to the length of the antenna cable going to the bouy and it's corresponding angle.

Even then, it might not be accurate, since it's unlikely that the cable would form a straight line from the scooter to the buoy. Current, cable weight and drag, surface conditions, and a number of other factors would all conspire to draw a curve. Drag from the cable and buoy would also degrade the performance of the scooter. Maybe some sort of acoustic signal could link several gps-positioned surface buoys to the scooter in order to re-triangulate it's position from them?

 

[Gary D.]

The USGS has a GPS "system" that works underwater. Not just a Myth Buster show but a real one that I have had my hands on. It was used here in Coeur d'Alene Lake.

Gary D.

 

[MSilvia]

When you go scuba diving, what do you do to navigate?

I use a compass, as well as noting underwater terrain and cues such as ripples in the sand.

Do you ever get confused about what you are looking at when you are diving?

Not really, unless the visibility is horribly low or I'm under the effects of narcosis.

Have you ever hired a diving guide to take you to a certain spot to dive?

Yes, on several occasions.

What was good or bad about the guide you hired?

Good: Knowledge of local area and wildlife, as well as typical conditions for the site.
Bad: Too much emphasis on following the usual route, with little patience for side explorations that put us "behind schedule".

Have you ever used an underwater scooter?

Yes, but it was a long time ago in a pool.

If so, which kind was good or bad about it?

It was the first and only I've used, but I remember it was only depth rated to 30 feet. That's not a problem in the pool, but I'd never buy one for open water use.

What kind of handles did it have? What is difficult about it? Did it make you hurt
anywhere after a while? Where?

It had twin pistol grip handles, with throttle triggers. It was easy to use, and not uncomfortable.

What is the best time of the day to dive if you want to see wildlife?

It depends on what you want to see, but there is generally more activity at night.

 

[stiebs]

Sheesh.. the guy says:

Regardless of the problem of GPS under water,what do you think about this idea in theory?

.. and the first four responses are discussing the problem of GPS underwater!

When you go scuba diving, what do you do to navigate?

A compass and spacial awareness (ie, reading the line of the reef system, the current/surge, etc)

Do you ever get confused about what you are looking at when you are diving?

Not confused. Sometimes I will see something that I don't recognise, but not confused.

Have you ever hired a diving guide to take you to a certain spot to dive?

I have been on local dive charters on numerous occassions, but with no in-water guide. Just a briefing before entry. On holidays I have been with an in-water divemaster/guide

What was good or bad about the guide you hired?

In a group, they will generally cater for the least experienced divers. Which is good for them, but not necessarily for the more adventurous/experienced divers. I good dm/guide for the area will be able to take you straight to the Good Bits, which might otherwise take you 5 or 10 minutes to find when diving a site for the first time, if indeed you find them at all.

Have you ever used an underwater scooter?

No.

What is the best time of the day to dive if you want to see wildlife?

Any time of day. During the day there is obviously more light, and its easy to see things. But just as above ground, there are usually different creatures around at night. The same dive site can appear to be totally different during the day than it does at night.

I am designing an underwater scooter for the Great Barrier Reef which is capable of following an underwater route via GPS. This route would take the diver on a tour of spots in the Great Barrier Reef./QUOTE]

Not having ever used a scooter, there are probably others than can comment better than I, but I'll add a couple of cents worth anyway..

One concept that you will come across a lot in these forums is about task loading. Ie, the more that a diver has to think about, the less of that thinking time is spent on the more critical tasks (like controlling buoyancy). The more experienced the diver, the more tasks they will be able to handle without endangering themselves - to a limit.

You idea seems targetted at the tourist diver, who may not be a particularly experienced diver. I'm not sure of what sort of level of task-loading a scooter would have, specifically around being able to maintain neutral bouyancy for an inexperienced diver.

 

[M_Bipartitus]

When you go scuba diving, what do you do to navigate?

Same as everyone else...

Do you ever get confused about what you are looking at when you are diving?

Once durring a silt-out, not good sightseeing anyways.

Have you ever hired a diving guide to take you to a certain spot to dive? What was good or bad about the guide you hired?

Yes, he knew the area well and was able to give advise for topside attractions as well (food, shops...)

Have you ever used an underwater scooter?
If so, which kind was good or bad about it?

Yes, I don't remember which kind. Good for moving around and seeing alot, Bad for keeping an eye on diving stats (depth, air pressure...)

What kind of handles did it have? What is difficult about it? Did it make you hurt
anywhere after a while? Where?

They were a common pistol grip style. I quickly found that it worked a lot better for me to attach to a D-ring so that I only needed one had to steer.

I am designing an underwater scooter for the Great Barrier Reef which is capable of following an underwater route via GPS. This route would take the diver on a tour of spots in the Great Barrier Reef. Regardless of the problem of GPS under water,what do you think about this idea in theory? Specifically along the lines of your own experiences, do you have any suggestions?

good luck, hope you can overcome the problems mentioned above. I might add that there should be an easy correction for the difference in location of a float on a rope and the diver based on speed. Also it may not be necessary that the route is that exact. For example, If I were 5 feet or 15 feet from the bow of a shipwreck, I can still tell it is the bow of a shipwreck.

 

[sal]

what do you mean by "attach a d-ring"? Do you mean that you would tether yourself to the scooter and hold on with one hand?

 

[M_Bipartitus]

Some gear has a ring of metal near the crotch that is designed to attach scooters. Basically easier to use that way