image: The Research Centre in Robotics and Underwater Technologies (CIRTESU) at the Universitat Jaume I conducted this week, at the PortCastelló facilities, wireless communication tests between a surface robot and the award-winning robot fish, recognized as the best work in marine automation nationwide during the Spanish Automation Committee conference held in early September in Cartagena. The jury particularly valued the combination of advanced mechatronic design and the integration of different systems, which make the robot fish a leading research and aquatic environment inspection platform, tested in real experiments both in the CIRTESU pool and in the waters of the Port of Castelló. With this recognition, the UJI consolidates the research excellence of its teams and projects its impact on sustainable applications in the aquaculture sector. According to CIRTESU researcher Raúl Marín, “It is essential for us to carry out cyclic and gradual research, first in university facilities and then in a realistic environment, like the Port of Castelló, where the collaboration of the Port Authority staff has been key to achieving the progress made.” The robot fish stands out for its ability to deploy and retrieve sensors in the marine environment. Its features include biomimetic fins, an umbilical communication system, and an auxiliary sonar system. It also incorporates a visual inspection system specifically designed for internal analysis of fish farm nets, an approach that opens new possibilities to improve maintenance and sustainability in aquaculture. “This technology,” says Raúl Marín, “will decisively contribute to improving the safety and welfare of animals in fish farming, as it provides leading and sustainable solutions for the future of aquaculture. Our future work will focus on new robotic advances that enable net repair, within the framework of research projects and CIRTESU’s strategic line.”
Credit: Universitat Jaume I of Castellón
The Research Centre in Robotics and Underwater Technologies (CIRTESU) at the Universitat Jaume I conducted this week, at the PortCastelló facilities, wireless communication tests between a surface robot and the award-winning robot fish, recognized as the best work in marine automation nationwide during the Spanish Automation Committee conference held in early September in Cartagena.
The jury particularly valued the combination of advanced mechatronic design and the integration of different systems, which make the robot fish a leading research and aquatic environment inspection platform, tested in real experiments both in the CIRTESU pool and in the waters of the Port of Castelló. With this recognition, the UJI consolidates the research excellence of its teams and projects its impact on sustainable applications in the aquaculture sector.
According to CIRTESU researcher Raúl Marín, “It is essential for us to carry out cyclic and gradual research, first in university facilities and then in a realistic environment, like the Port of Castelló, where the collaboration of the Port Authority staff has been key to achieving the progress made.”
The robot fish stands out for its ability to deploy and retrieve sensors in the marine environment. Its features include biomimetic fins, an umbilical communication system, and an auxiliary sonar system. It also incorporates a visual inspection system specifically designed for internal analysis of fish farm nets, an approach that opens new possibilities to improve maintenance and sustainability in aquaculture.
“This technology,” says Raúl Marín, “will decisively contribute to improving the safety and welfare of animals in fish farming, as it provides leading and sustainable solutions for the future of aquaculture. Our future work will focus on new robotic advances that enable net repair, within the framework of research projects and CIRTESU’s strategic line.”
The President of the Port Authority, Rubén Ibáñez, highlighted that “the tests we conduct every two months in collaboration with CIRTESU-UJI reinforce the Port of Castelló’s strategy as an innovation and experimentation hub for more efficient, sustainable, and safe infrastructure.”
The work has been carried out at the IRS Lab (CIRTESU), Interactive Robotic Systems Lab, also known as the Submarine Robotics Group at the Universitat Jaume I in Castelló, within the Department of Engineering and Computer Science. The research is part of the doctoral thesis of Andrea Pino Jarque, supervised by María Rosario Vidal and Raúl Marín Prades, and coordinated by Professor Pedro J. Sanz Valero.
The experimental tests were made possible thanks to the support of the Port of Castelló and, in particular, the R&D Department. Special mention goes to Max Puig Sariñena, a graduate from the first class of the Degree in Robotics Intelligence at the Universitat Jaume I, who conducted underwater communication experiments as part of his final degree project under the supervision of Professor Juan Echagüe Guardiola.
PortCastelló and the UJI signed a collaboration agreement in July 2024, granting the port authority’s facilities to the research centre as an isolated environment for conducting experimental tests of technology developed in various publicly funded research projects. The agreement also facilitates raising the Technology Readiness Level, a measure describing the maturity of a developing technology, and addressing new challenges thanks to access to the marine environment.
Awarded article: https://revistas.udc.es/index.php/JA_CEA/article/view/12247