Between last week's class and now, we tested the submersible in two creeks off campus. Our first test, taking place in Valley Forge park, was mostly to check on the buoyancy. We decided to add some weight and take away some foam for a rough buoyancy test, but the submersible still mostly floated.
Our second test was closer to home, in faster water. We found that the motors were just strong enough to match the speed of the water, even when using the boost motor. It turns out that the boost motor takes away enough power from the side motors that the sub ends up going the same speed.
To compensate for this, Jacob wired two AA batteries into the boost motor circuit. They were wired on a bypass switch to test the difference in power. The 9V-18V boost motor was able to handle the additional 3V over the supplied 12V motors. This was enough to make the sub overtake the water speed.
This is a video of different highlights of our tests.
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