1961 – Submaray Submersible – Doug Privitt (American)

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1961 – Submaray Submersible by Doug Privitt started being built in 1961 and was launched in 1962.

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Privitt inside Submaray operating the simple rod manipulator arm. It appears to slide inside a ball-and-socket joint, as can be seen in the video clip. Although a simple setup, this arm is quite efficient and versatile. The claw can be interchanged with other tools and attachments using a quick-attachment feature.

Video of Submaray demonstrating its manipulator arm.

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Arm fully extended picking up object.

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Demo of manipulator lifting an anchor

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Arm collecting samples.

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Image source: Manned Submersibles, Frank Bushby, 1976.

See another rod and ball-joint arm here.


See other early Underwater Robots here.