Rovco to Double Its Workforce
course to double its headcount by the end of 2019.To accommodate its rapidly expanding team, the firm recently relocated to larger premises in Bristol. The new 2,200 sq ft office space will also house a research and development laboratory, where Rovco will conduct further studies into underwater artificial intelligence and live 3D computer vision.With a number of projects in the pipeline and plans in place to purchase a fleet of autonomous vehicles, Rovco is in position to further expand its ROV and AUV service offering.Brian Allen, CEO of Rovco, said, “This is an exciting time for the company and
Nippon Foundation Addresses Global Ocean Threats
Japan. At the same time, we do not have the means or the technology to extract those resources. So this is something that Japan will have to acquire, as soon as possible, in order to leverage those resources.Japan is well known for having sophisticated technology, in areas such as robotics and artificial intelligence. When it comes to Deep Star, they are well-known in terms of working in the field, hands-on. So from that standpoint, we feel that the younger generation of Japan would be able to have the opportunity to be further educated and trained, together with Deep Star, to acquire the necessary capabiliti
Interview: David Millar, Fugro
more efficient and more cost-effective operations. As a result, we are developing and offering services with increased automation, not only in terms of autonomous and unmanned vehicles, but also in terms of command and control technologies, such as OARS, and processing techniques, such as artificial intelligence machine learning.How has the energy swoon impacted Fugro? How is Fugro most the same, most different, from five years ago?Fugro is a leaner, more customer-focused organization today than it was five years ago. The offshore energy downturn has forced us to improve our organization, improve
Subsea Robotics for Renewables
built point cloud models, was designed for deployment on underwater robotic platforms such as ROVs and AUVs.Another project, with ORE Catapult support, will see Bristol-based Rovco to use its 3D visualisation technology with subsea robotic systems to image offshore wind foundations, supported by artificial intelligence-driven software, to lower inspection costs by 80%. A system was moving to full testing and validation at the ORE Catapult’s National Renewable Energy Centre in Blyth, northeast England.GroutTo address the issues around grout and weld faults on monopiles and jackets, the OWA is supporting
AI Guides Rapid Data-Driven Exploration of Changing Underwater Habitats
A recent expedition led by Dr. Blair Thornton, holding Associate Professorships at both the University of Southampton and the Institute of Industrial Science, the University of Tokyo, demonstrated how the use of autonomous robotics and artificial intelligence at sea can dramatically accelerate the exploration and study of hard to reach deep sea ecosystems, like intermittently active methane seeps. Thanks to rapid high throughput data analysis at sea, it was possible to identify biological hotspots at the Hydrate Ridge Region off the coast of Oregon, quickly enough to survey and sample them
Subsea Defense: Extending Unmanned Capabilities
sensors.Extending the capabilities of submarine warfare systems without the need for humans is a key focus in the marine defense space. Navies feel under threat; they have limited budgets and worries about resurgent maritime forces from Russia and China, while new technologies – robotics, artificial intelligence (AI) and autonomous systems – are increasingly available to an ever-wider range of players, creating what are termed asymmetric threats in an ever-wider battle space.Commodore Robert Anstey, Assistant Chief of Staff Submarines – Royal Navy, told the Underwater Defence Technology
MTR100: The Ones to Watch
Maslin is MTR’s ‘eyes & ears’ on the ground scouting new tech for our pages. Her mandate for the MTR100 was simple: ‘find five companies to watch closely in 2019.’ This is what she found.Forssea: Leveraging Machine Learning & AIMachine learning and artificial intelligence have made a huge impact on our day to day lives, from image recognition in Facebook to cars parking for themselves. These technologies are entering the subsea space in various shapes and forms.Paris-based Forssea Robotics is a subsea robotics and research and development (R&D) startup
Deep Ocean Exploration is the 21st Century ‘Space Race’
has shown us to be a resourceful species, always using the tools available to us to explore, understand and utilize the bounty of resources around us to create a better life. We have come a long way from the stone tools of our ancestors; the tools of today take the form of technology, computers, artificial intelligence and robots which we use very effectively in a number of areas including healthcare, education, transportation, manufacturing and communication. Many of these advances have been made possible by government leadership that spurs innovation, healthy competition and, ultimately, economic prosperity
Rovco Joins NVIDIA Inception Program
UK-based subsea company Rovco has announced plans to take artificial intelligence (AI) to new depths after being selected to join the NVIDIA Inception Program. Designed to nurture start-ups that are revolutionizing industries with advances in AI and data science, the virtual incubator program supports members overcome critical stages of product development, prototyping, and deployment. Being selected by NVIDIA will see Rovco benefit from hardware grants, marketing support and training to aid the development of the firm’s range of underwater robotics and subsea inspection techniques.
Marine Robots Take Center Stage
The use of robotics and artificial intelligence in marine technology will be the theme of Marine-i’s next Discovery Room event. This free event will take place on Wednesday November 22 at Tremough Innovation Center, Penryn. Marine-i is an EU-funded scheme that provides support for the marine technology sector in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly. Its Discovery Room events are designed to draw together the latest thinking and expertise on a specific theme of marine technology, delivered in a series of short presentations and followed up by interactive workshops and Q&A sessions.
Partners to Advance Subsea Robotic Inspection
A first-of-its-kind integration of artificial intelligence, autonomous underwater vehicles, laser sensors and 3D imaging aims to advance inspection services for the oil and gas industry. Kraken Robotics Inc.’s wholly-owned subsidiary, Kraken Robotic Systems Inc., has partnered with GE Venture Avitas Systems to integrate autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs), acoustic and laser sensor technology and artificial intelligence-based navigation software into unique subsea inspection solutions for the oil and gas, offshore renewable energy and shipping industries. The announcement was
Ocean Discovery XPRIZE Testing Altered
scientists and engineers. Representing 13 countries across five continents, the Ocean Discovery XPRIZE semifinalist teams’ innovative approaches involve unique, hybrid systems that mobilize gliders and drones, underwater robotic swarms, autonomous underwater vehicles, robotics, artificial intelligence and massive computing platforms. Once launched, these robots and vehicles use artificial intelligence to navigate and explore, gathering underwater data for retrieval following each mission. “Round 1 testing for the Shell Ocean Discovery XPRIZE takes us a step closer toward
Rovco Secures Funding for 3D Visualization Project
Subsea technology company Rovco said it has secured Innovate UK funding to develop a cutting-edge 3D visualization system as part of a two-part Artificial Intelligence demonstrator project potentially worth £1 million. Working in partnership with the Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) Catapult, the first phase of the project will see Rovco develop the equipment and software required to produce live 3D data from challenging and extreme subsea environments. The technology will be trialed and tested at ORE Catapult’s renewable energy test facility in Blyth. Phase two will
Kraken Wins Offshore Wind Energy Competition
high-resolution point cloud. SeaVision produces over 300,000 colored points per second and can reconstruct a 3D object in real-time with typical spatial accuracy of better than 2 millimeters. These datasets can be used to create highly detailed models for 3D visualization, asset management, artificial intelligence and predictive analytics
Acteon, Arundo Analytics to Boost Subsea Efficiency
their engineering and cost challenges–both current and future–by providing efficiency-driven solutions. This partnership with Arundo will enable both companies to develop high-value analytics for operating companies supporting global customers through tools like machine learning and artificial intelligence to reduce the cost asset of ownership by 30 percent. “We have a range of service lines focused on data capture and interpretation across all stages of the field life cycle,” said Paul Alcock, EVP of Acteon. “The aim of this partnership with Arundo is to align our
Partners Set Out to Drive Subsea Digitalization
us to uncover the many future benefits of digitalization throughout the life of the field,” said Steve Wisely, Senior Vice President, i-Tech Services. “We look forward to collaborating with Leidos to deliver a technology development plan that utilizes big data, digitalization and artificial intelligence to allow clients to harvest greater insight for early decision making ensuring focused and cost effective management of the field by reducing OPEX.”“The partnership has already identified and initiated the first two development phases, which will see a focus on data acquisition
Offshore: Nippon Foundation, Deepstar Sign MOU
shores of Japan. "At the same time we do not have the means or the technology to extract those resouces. This capability is something that Japan will have to acquire as soon as possible to leverage those available resources." While Japan is a technology leader in robotics and artificial intelligence, the same cannot be said for its offshore energy business. The plan is for the Deepstar relationship to facilitate intelligence transfer for Japan's next generation. DeepStar is a joint industry technology development project focused on advancing the technologies to meet its members'
