Project Overview

Hydrolink is a portable and modular networking repeater buoy intended to abridge communications between radio and acoustic domains. This system is intended to support underwater vehicle communication, localization, and navigation with Ultra-Short Baseline system (USBL) communication and can support a variety of technical and scientific instruments to aid short-term deployments.

A diagram outlining the inner-workings of the Hydrolink probe
Hydrolink overview

Electrical Stack Development

An image of the breadboards and microcomputer used to estimate housing size
Rough electrical layout to estimate housing size

Step 1: Identify Electronics

  • Raspberry Pi 3B - communication via WiFi
  • Arduino Nano - sensor data & LED control
  • Sensors: GPS, IMU
  • Programmable LED
  • Voltage converters

An image of a drill press being used to create holes in housing
Machining cable penetrator holes in electronic housing

Step 2: Housing & Connectors

  • Waterproof case

  • Potted cable penetrator

    • Battery
    • LED
    • Antenna

  • On-off switch

  • Breadboard connections

An image of a testing bench
Testing code for data acquisition and LED control

Step 3: Programming & Testing

  • GPS and IMU data collection
  • LED control logic
  • Serial communication with Raspberry Pi

An image of assembled casing
Integrating and configuring WiFi router

Step 4: Configuration & Validation

  • Configure WIFI settings
  • Remote SSH into Raspberry Pi
  • Leakage check