Robohub.org
podcast
 

The OpenROV project with Eric Stackpole and David Lang

OpenROV         

by
14 June 2013



share this:

In the episode, we speak with Eric Stackpole and David Lang from the OpenROV project about their challenge in developing Eric’s idea to find an easy way to explore a cave that was rumored to contain a sunken treasure near his home.

OpenROV (OPEN-source Remotely Operated Vehicle) is a telerobotic submarine built to make underwater exploration and education affordable. We will hear of their learning curve to turn a fun idea into a funded kick-starter project, on a shoestring budget and how they inspired the community to develop the project further. This has united the imagination of DYI beginners, amateurs, professional engineers and scientists from over 50 countries, with far more applications than were original conceded, from pollution monitoring to species identification in the Antarctica.

Eric Stackpole
Eric Stackpole is a Co-Founder of OpenROV and the original designer of the robot. He currently works part-time for NASA at the Ames Research Center and is finishing his masters thesis in mechatronics at Santa Clara University. Eric has always been an enthusiast of  exploration technology, from building a telerobot to attend classes in college to lugging ham radios up mountains during backpacking trips.

David Lang
David Lang is a Co-Founder of OpenROV. He also writes the Zero to Maker column for the MAKE blog, where he chronicles his crash-course into the maker world. Prior to underwater robots, David managed OCSC Sailing in Berkeley where he helped hundreds of students learn to sail and led sailing adventures around the world.

Links:



tags: , ,


Podcast team The ROBOTS Podcast brings you the latest news and views in robotics through its bi-weekly interviews with leaders in the field.
Podcast team The ROBOTS Podcast brings you the latest news and views in robotics through its bi-weekly interviews with leaders in the field.





Related posts :



Why companies don’t share AV crash data – and how they could

  01 Dec 2025
Researchers have created a roadmap outlining the barriers and opportunities to encourage AV companies to share the data to make AVs safer.

Robot Talk Episode 135 – Robot anatomy and design, with Chapa Sirithunge

  28 Nov 2025
In the latest episode of the Robot Talk podcast, Claire chatted to Chapa Sirithunge from University of Cambridge about what robots can teach us about human anatomy, and vice versa.

Learning robust controllers that work across many partially observable environments

  27 Nov 2025
Exploring designing controllers that perform reliably even when the environment may not be precisely known.

Human-robot interaction design retreat

  25 Nov 2025
Find out more about an event exploring design for human-robot interaction.

Robot Talk Episode 134 – Robotics as a hobby, with Kevin McAleer

  21 Nov 2025
In the latest episode of the Robot Talk podcast, Claire chatted to Kevin McAleer from kevsrobots about how to get started building robots at home.

ACM SIGAI Autonomous Agents Award 2026 open for nominations

  19 Nov 2025
Nominations are solicited for the 2026 ACM SIGAI Autonomous Agents Research Award.

Robot Talk Episode 133 – Creating sociable robot collaborators, with Heather Knight

  14 Nov 2025
In the latest episode of the Robot Talk podcast, Claire chatted to Heather Knight from Oregon State University about applying methods from the performing arts to robotics.



 

Robohub is supported by:




Would you like to learn how to tell impactful stories about your robot or AI system?


scicomm
training the next generation of science communicators in robotics & AI


 












©2025.05 - Association for the Understanding of Artificial Intelligence