Unmanned Surface Vehicle - Autonomous Boat

What is the project about?

VantTec USV is an autonomous surface vehicle (USV) developed by students from Tecnológico de Monterrey for the international RoboBoat competition. The boat is designed to autonomously navigate waterways, avoid obstacles, process real-time sensor data, and perform environmental monitoring missions without human intervention. Our goal is to combine robotics, AI, embedded systems, and maritime engineering into a real-world autonomous platform capable of addressing future challenges in environmental monitoring and smart maritime systems.

Why did we decide to make it?

We created this project because we believe autonomous technologies can help solve real environmental and industrial challenges. Water monitoring is often expensive, dangerous, and resource-intensive when done manually. Autonomous boats can collect environmental data more efficiently while reducing operational costs and human risk.

As students, we also wanted to challenge ourselves by building industry-level engineering systems that go beyond classroom theory. RoboBoat gives us the opportunity to represent Mexico internationally while developing practical engineering experience in robotics, AI, electronics, and software integration.

How does it work?

The boat operates using a combination of:

• Custom PCB-based embedded electronics
• Sensors such as GPS, IMUs, cameras, and LiDAR
• Autonomous navigation algorithms
• Computer vision and obstacle detection
• Real-time communication systems
• AI-based decision making

The onboard systems process sensor data in real time to detect obstacles, localize the vessel, and autonomously complete competition tasks. Our custom PCBs are critical for integrating sensors, power distribution, communication modules, and onboard computing systems into a compact and reliable architecture. PCBWay’s support would directly help us manufacture and assemble these custom electronic systems.

What are we doing now?

We are currently developing the second iteration of our custom PCB for the upcoming RoboBoat 2027 competition, designed to integrate seamlessly into our newly engineered hull architecture.

The current first-iteration board is a 4-layer PCB (approximately 99.5 × 99.5 mm) centered around an STMicroelectronics STM32 series microcontroller, developed to validate our core design approach. Our team specializes in embedded systems design, with a focus on power management, PWM signal generation, CAN bus communication, and SBUS interfacing for peripheral device integration.

A key requirement of our electronics is the ability to drive a variety of small actuators, including stepper motors. This demands dedicated motor driver circuits and ICs — including H-bridge configurations — to ensure precise, reliable motor control across different operating conditions.

Building on lessons learned from the first iteration, the second-generation PCB will feature a refined architecture with improved signal integrity, tighter power delivery, and a more compact footprint suited to the new boat design. PCBWay's support would be instrumental in bringing this next iteration to life with the precision and reliability our autonomous system demands.

Our track record

VantTec was founded in 2017 and has since grown into one of Mexico's most accomplished student robotics teams, with a consistent presence in international competition and academic publishing.

• 2017: Team founded
• 2020: 1st place — RoboBoat (online)
• 2021: 1st place in two categories
• 2024: Top 3 — Xignux Challenge (national)
• 2024: RoboBoat "Persistence" special award
• 12 Technical articles
• 3 Journal publications
• 9 Conferences
• 17 Active members