Raspberry Pi to skipper microship across Atlantic

FishPi served

Raspberry Pi's journey to punters pockets has hardly gone swimmingly, but as it prepares to cross the Atlantic in a homemade autonomous boat - aptly dubbed FishPi - the budget Linux PC continues to make quite a splash in the tech pool.

FishPi - the brainchild of enthusiast Greg Holloway - is a 20in long vessel that navigates using GPS and a compass. Solar-powered batteries provide the juice for a 40mm Kort propeller which Holloway hopes will be sufficient to push the vessel across the Atlantic.

The Raspberry Pi unit is encased in a tupperware box to keep it nice and dry. If only the Titanic had such state-of-the-art protection, eh?

With the FishPi still in the proof-of-concept stage, there's a way to go yet, but if you can't wait for its maiden voyage, you can see the craft in action on 3 July 2012 at the Nottingham Hackspace Raspberry Jam. Sail away. ®