OceanObs’19: Innovation Expanding Ocean Observations
Some people spend years following their favorite bands, others attend conventions for science fiction shows. But once a decade those dedicated to sustained ocean observing gather. The OceanObs conferences are held once every ten years to focus the attention of those planning, implementing, and applying ocean observing systems. Each conference allows this diverse group to review the state of science and operations, and to define goals for the next decade. The decadal conferences are an occasion to celebrate the accomplishments and vision of global ocean observers.300 attendees gathered for The First
IBM Joins Mayflower Autonomous Ship Project
2020.A new Mayflower will set sail 400 years after the historic voyage, this time using AI and other advanced technologies, the American IT major said.The Mayflower Autonomous Ship (MAS) will use IBM’s AI, advanced servers, cloud and edge computing technologies to navigate autonomously and avoid ocean hazards as it makes its way from Plymouth, England to Plymouth, Massachusetts. During the 12-day voyage, the ship will be powered mainly by wind and solar energy."Putting a research ship to sea can cost tens of thousands of dollars or pounds a day and is limited by how much time people can spend
Turner Designs Introduces New Turbidity Sensor
Turbidity measurements at very low levels of detection can be of great importance to those interested in harbor dredging, underground pipeline installation, and riverine applications in general. With these applications in mind, Turner Designs is excited to introduce a new turbidity sensor with a minimum detection limit of 0.05NTU and a maximum range of 500NTU. Keeping the instrument optical face clean is particularly important in these applications so Turbidity Plus includes an integrated wiper which is triggered by the user. Turbidity Plus is designed for integration with multiparamet
Video: Robotic Surf Crawler
sensors.The vehicle can be used in autonomous mode using inertial systems or GPS, and can be driven using RF antenna, RF buoy or using a tether. Trialed this summer at ANTX, the inertial system achieved a misclosure of 3.38m after a 2,813m mission with 44 turns.C-2 Innovations said Scripps Institution of Oceanography has had one of its vehicles in use for four years, and USACE North Carolina FRF has a contract to purchase one.Nick Townley, business development, C-2 Innovations, with the Sea Ox (Photo: Rob Howard
Damen Shipyards Selects TCS for IoT platform
Damen Shipyards, an international shipyard group, has partnered with the global IT services giant Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) in the development of an integrated IoT platform, with its eyes firmly on the future."With this, Damen vessels become increasingly connected and Damen is able to gather and analyze data from the 10-15,000 sensors on board its vessels," the Dutch shipbuilding conglomerate said in a press release.The results of this are significant, offering predictive maintenance, remote services access and savings in fuel consumption.Furthermore, this is a
The Importance of FAIR Data in Earth Science
Data’s valuation as an enterprise asset is most acutely realized over time. When properly managed, the same dataset supports a plurality of use cases, becomes almost instantly available upon request, and is exchangeable between departments or organizations to systematically increase its yield with each deployment.These boons of leveraging data as an enterprise asset are the foundation of GO FAIR’s Findable Accessible Interoperable Reusable (FAIR) principles profoundly impacting the data management rigors of geological science. Numerous organizations in this space have embraced these tenets
Interview: Dr. Catherine Warner, Director, NATO CMRE
–MARCOM. For instance, we’ve been able to make available our expertise in anti-submarine warfare (ASW), mine countermeasures (MCM), and environmental knowledge /operational effectiveness (EKOE), which could be battlespace characterization, or an environmental assessment of military oceanography. Environmental knowledge is basically characterizing the state of the sea and atmosphere, in real-time, on how it will affect an operation. We’ve had some really good recent successes participating in NATO exercises like Dynamic Mongoose, which are annual ASW trials in the GI-UK
Japan, Scotland Invest in Subsea Technology
floating structures including offshore wind, shipping, platforms etcSustainable Marine Energy with IHI (£1 million)Developing a template anchoring system and robotic installation tooling for deep water floating offshore wind market in Japan. IHI are also developing a turbine system for use in ocean current renewable power.ECOG / SME / Precision Impulse / Texo / Tritech / Sensor Works and Yokogawa (£8.3 million)Developing an offshore and subsea Internet Of Things infrastructure with autonomous vehicles, sensors, communications and power systems for offshore and subsea infrastructure including
Seaspan-Built CCG Ship Heads for Sea Trials
The future Capt. Jacques Cartier, the second of three Offshore Fisheries Science Vessels (OFSV) to be designed and built by Seaspan at its Vancouver Shipyards (VSY), began sea trials on October 10, 2019 from Seaspan’s Vancouver Drydock where final outfitting, set to work and commissioning has taken place since its launch in June.“With the future Capt. Jacques Cartier headed out to sea today, excitement in our NSS program is growing,” said Mark Lamarre, CEO, Seaspan Shipyards. I” want to thank all our employees, partners and most especially our Coast Guard community for your
Fugro Completes GoM Surveys for Shell
Fugro said it has completed several deepwater geophysical surveys in the Gulf of Mexico for Shell.The project required data collection over multiple deepwater lease blocks in the greater Perdido and Mars development areas to support clearance of potential environmental, engineering, geological and archaeological hazards ahead of planned drilling activities, the Dutch-based geo-data company said.As the preferred contractor for this project, Fugro deployed a Hugin autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) from its purpose-built survey vessel, the Fugro Brasilis. The Hugin AUV is depth-rated to 3,000 meters
Blue Ocean Monitoring Orders AUV
Blue Ocean Monitoring Ltd. has recently purchased a new L3Harris Technologies Iver3 Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) to support their global survey operations.This innovative technology directly challenges traditional vessel-based, ROV and larger AUV survey techniques, delivering highly accurate survey data with significant reductions in project cost, time and risk. The AUV has been robustly engineered, is capable of operations to 200m, and is one of the smallest and lightest on the market, allowing for single-user deployment from small work vessels or directly from shore.Keith Wallace
Forum’s XLe Spirit ROV Completes Sea Trials
Forum Subsea Technologies’ latest remotely operated vehicle (ROV), the XLe Spirit, has completed sea trials in Norway, the manufacturer announced on Wednesday.The vehicle is the first of a new generation of electric observation class ROVs. It is the smallest in the new range, and powerful enough to perform subsea maintenance and repair work. It is suited to the aquaculture market and capable of tasks such as net and tank inspection.Working with its Norwegian partner, Innova AS, Forum tested the XLe Spirit at a fjord with a 500-meter water depth. The standard equipment function testing was
Unique Group Buys Five USVs
Subsea and offshore solutions provider Unique Group has sad it has signed an agreement to acquire five unmanned surface vessels (USV) DriX units from French technology company iXblue.The autonomous offshore survey vehicles are designed for a range of tasks such as geophysical and hydrographic surveys, touchdown monitoring of pipelines, subsea positioning, and remotely operated underwater vehicle (ROV) and autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) tracking.DriX, with its long endurance, increased hydrodynamics and flexible sensor payload, can improve the efficiency of offshore operations and act as a true
WASSP Launches New Rapid Deployment Multibeam Sounder
WASSP Multibeam has launched its new rapid deployment multibeam sounder – the W3 Rapid Deployment System (RDS).Revealed at Pacific Expo 2019 in Sydney this week, W3 RDS has been designed for Navy’s, Maritime Police and Search & Rescue organisations for use where depths are unknown and to find safe navigation routes for larger vessels.When a fixed transducer installation in a small vessel such as a tender isn’t always practical, the W3 RDS has been designed around a portable Carbon fiber Mast that includes a transducer, motion sensor and satellite compass. This lets operators
Bureau Veritas Aproves IoT Platform Fleet Data
Fleet Data from Inmarsat has received Approval in Principle (AiP) from leading classification society Bureau Veritas.This is a major milestone for the maritime industry’s leading secure sensor data and Internet of Things (IoT) platform. Conditions of approval by Bureau Veritas verify that Fleet Data can be installed safely on board without its operation affecting existing navigation, safety and radio communication systems.The bandwidth-inclusive platform allows ship owners and managers to take control of sensor data collected on board, pre-process, extract and aggregate it in cloud-based storage
Sonardyne Equips Brazilian Research Vessel
Science equipment and underwater vehicles deployed from Brazil’s flagship oceanographic research vessel, Alpha Crucis, are to be tracked using Ultra-Short BaseLine (USBL) positioning technology supplied by Sonardyne Brasil Ltda.The 64-meter-long vessel, which is operated by the University of São Paulo, undertakes research projects spanning global climate change to biodiversity in Brazilian waters. It will be equipped with a Sonardyne Ranger 2 USBL high precision acoustic positioning system to enable the Alpha Crucis’ 21-strong science team to precisely track their instruments and
OSIL Releases Box Corer T-Bar System
A sophisticated T-bar mini-penetrometer for exclusive in-field seabed strength profiling of box core samples is now available from globally renowned environmental monitoring experts Ocean Scientific International Ltd (OSIL).The T-bar penetrometer measures the resistance of sediment to continuous penetration at a slow steady rate using a cylindrical rod (T-bar) at the end of a perpendicular push rod or thruster and, uniquely, is small enough to fit on to the top of a box corer sample box immediately on its recovery on-deck to allow for on-site sampling on the back of the vessel.Using axial load, dual
VLIZ Takes Delivery of a Gavia AUV
for highly accurate navigation and current profiling, Klein 3500 side scan with bathymetry, camera system, Gavia Science Bay module housing an iXblue GAPS transponder for use with an existing VLIZ owned USBL system, Aandera dissolved oxygen, Wetlabs ECO puck, and RBR CTD. A SUNA nitrate sensor and Pro-Oceanus Mini CO2 are mounted externally as required. A Gavia Portable Launch and Recovery cage was also supplied for safer LARS procedures with a nose recovery system. Wieter Boone, Head of the VLIZ Marine Robotics Center said, “We were looking for a versatile system, to operate both
Trimble Marine Construction Software for Positioning
The new Trimble Marine Construction Software for Positioning provides contractors with the ability to perform their own pre-/post-construction hydrographic survey.The system consists of Trimble Marine Construction software and a single beam echo sounder (SBES) for data acquisition, editing, plotting and dredge volume calculations. According to the developer, Contractors can reduce rework, increase productivity and improve site safety with a better understanding of the underwater environment.The accuracy of the waterway bed survey is the combined accuracy of the GNSS position and the echosounder
Shell Chooses Sonardyne for Monitoring Campaign
Subsea monitoring specialist Sonardyne International said its long-endurance sensors will be used by Shell during a 10-year seabed subsidence monitoring campaign at Norway’s second largest gas field. the Ormen Lange .Setting out to continuously monitor any movement of the seafloor at Ormen Lange field in the Norwegian Sea, Norske Shell will use the data to help detect changes that might be caused by ongoing gas extraction and inform its reservoir management strategy, as it continues to produce from the field over coming decades.By monitoring vertical displacement of the seabed, operators can
TSR Obtains Magnetometer to Aid in Treasure Hunting
Treasure & Shipwreck Recovery, Inc. (“TSR”), currently trading on the OTC market under the ticker symbol BLIS, announced that its brand-new cesium magnetometer was delivered. The following is an explanation of what this means by TSR chief operating officer and internationally known shipwreck expert Dr. E. Lee Spence:“This isn’t an off-the-shelf item that you can buy at your local dive shop or treasure hunting store. It’s a state-of-the-art piece of scientific equipment, costing almost $40,000.“Our new magnetometer is a model G882AR/4, made to special order
New Acoustic Test Facility at COVE in Nova Scotia
the primary test facility for prototype acoustic evaluation of underwater devices. The facility will be located at our hydrophone and transducer manufacturing facility at COVE, in Nova Scotia.Earlier this year SensorTech created the Atlantic Acoustics Collective (AAC) that brought together members of the ocean tech community to identify common obstacles in testing and calibrating our collective products.The SensorTech testing facility will be open to the Ocean Tech community year-round, to fill a gap that we identified through our creation of the Acoustics Collective and will include a fully automated
General Dynamics Launches New Bluefin-12
General Dynamics Mission Systems released the new Bluefin-12 autonomous unmanned underwater vehicle at Defense and Security Equipment International (DSEI) 2019.This new vehicle builds upon the proven Bluefin autonomy and uses shared Bluefin Robotics’ core capabilities, increased mission modularity and embedded intelligence to complete users’ long endurance, high-consequence and changing missions.The base Bluefin-12’s extended modularity supports the integration of user-designated sensors and payloads to deliver new mission-critical capabilities.The Bluefin Robotics core autonomy with
MacArtney to Supply Swedish Research Vessel
vessel, constructed for a wide range of maritime research and environmental monitoring, will be used by SLU and SMHI to collect scientific data for environmental monitoring, climate research and fishing quotas. The MacArtney package will be utilized to assist in this mission.Known for its high-speed oceanographic data acquisition work and designed to undulate between 1 and 350 meters the aft installed TRIAXUS ROTV with lateral offset will enable vertical profiling to be carried out by the R/V Svea in an undisturbed water column. While the bow installed FOCUS 2, acknowledged for its stability in the
OPT Announces PB3 PowerBuoy Contracts
Ocean Power Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: OPTT), a leader in innovative ocean energy solutions, has announced the signing of two new contracts with Enel Green Power Chile (EGP), a subsidiary of Enel Chile, part of the Enel Group, a multinational energy company and a leading global integrated electricity and gas operator. The combined value of the contracts exceeds US$1.9 million and includes the sale of a PB3 PowerBuoy and the development and supply of a state-of-the-art, turn-key integrated Open Sea Lab that will be OPT’s first deployment off the coast of Chile.The first contract with Enel
EOMAP Wins Funding for Next-Gen Satellite-Derived Bathymetry
EOMAP has been awarded by the German Aerospace Center (DLR) to further develop its physics-based method of mapping the depth of the sea from satellite observations.Satellite-Derived Bathymetry (SDB) uses data gathered by satellites and aircraft to generate depth measurements and seafloor characteristics for regions of shallow water. Developed 20 years ago by EOMAP scientists then at DLR (Germany) and CSIRO (Australia), SDB’s potential to create a continuously updated global database of shallow-water bathymetry is hampered by the heavy computing power required to process the large amounts of data
Teledyne Optech Introduces Galaxy T2000
Teledyne Optech, a Teledyne Technologies [NYSE:TDY] company, and leader in lidar sensing has announced the next evolution of its Galaxy platform, the Galaxy T2000. A compact lidar-mapping sensor, the Galaxy T2000 provides a unique feature set for maximum collection efficiency and point density, and is the next step in the evolution of modern aerial surveying. Coupled with a new G2 mounting system, the Galaxy T2000 leverages its compact size to co-mount two sensors over a single aircraft portal, making it quite simply the most flexible commercial lidar system on the market today.The Galaxy T2000
Ashtead Supports Subsea Template Installs
Subsea equipment solutions specialist Ashtead Technology said it has completed a subsea installation monitoring project for Ocean Installer AS in Equinor’s Askeladd and Johan Castberg fields in the Northern Norwegian Sea.The contract saw Ashtead Technology provide its integrated Deflection Monitoring System (DMS) services and equipment to support the installation of eight Integrated Template Structures (ITS).During operations, the dual independent DMS systems monitored, calculated, displayed and logged structure deflection, heading, pitch, roll, depth and suction can differential pressures
Sercel Launches New Ocean Bottom Node
CGG's equipment business Sercel has launched GPR, a new ocean bottom node (OBN) jointly developed in partnership with BGP and designed to leverage Sercel’s QuietSeis broadband digital sensor technology for reservoir characterization and field development efforts.Sercel and BGP have drawn on their longstanding partnership and complementary seismic expertise and experience to design, develop and deploy GPR. The new node has successfully completed sea trials, and input from BGP from the field has ensured GPR’s performance is precisely tailored to meet today’s industry requirements.
The Importance of FAIR Data in Earth Science
Data’s valuation as an enterprise asset is most acutely realized over time. When properly managed, the same dataset supports a plurality of use cases, becomes almost instantly available upon request, and is exchangeable between departments or organizations to systematically increase its yield with each deployment.These boons of leveraging data as an enterprise asset are the foundation of GO FAIR’s Findable Accessible Interoperable Reusable (FAIR) principles profoundly impacting the data management rigors of geological science. Numerous organizations in this space have embraced these tenets
Film-Ocean Orders 10th Saab Seaeye Falcon
Independent subsea contractor, Film-Ocean, has ordered its 10th Saab Seaeye Falcon.Film-Ocean have developed and patented a chain measuring system for FPSO and Offshore Wind Farm mooring systems which is easily deployed with the Falcon providing results in real time and is accurate to 0.1mm.Saab Seaeye says that the versatility shown by Film-Ocean’s engagement of the Falcon, demonstrates the success of the design’s concept that has made it the most popular underwater robotic vehicle of its class in the world.The Falcon’s winning concept comes from creating a highly reliable vehicle
New Research Vessels Choose Scantrol
The new Swedish oceangoing research vessel R/V Svea is fully equipped with Scantrol control systems for the electrical Ibercisa trawl and research winches onboard. More than 30 research vessels worldwide are depoyed with Scantrol systems and an increasing number of the new vessels choose to install a combination of Scantrol iSYM Autotrawl and Scantrol Active Heave Compensation (AHC) systems.Scantrol recently delivered a complete package of control systems to the new Swedish oceangoing research vessel R/V Svea. The vessel is especially adapted for research and environmental
DOF Subsea Upgrades ROV Fleet
Subsea services provider DOF Subsea has equipped a further three of its Brazilian offshore vessel fleet with hybrid acoustic and inertial navigation technology from Sonardyne Brasil Ltda.Sonardyne’s SPRINT-Nav all-in-one subsea navigation instruments are now supporting five Forum Energy Technologies (FET) remotely operated vehicles (ROV) on board the three vessels. This latest order takes the total number of DOF Subsea’s Brazilian vessels equipped with SPRINT-Nav aided ROVs to six.SPRINT-Nav combines Sonardyne’s SPRINT sensor, Syrinx 600 kHz Doppler velocity log (DVL) and a pressure
Increased Confidence in CO2 Storage
, should it occur: detect it, to measure its strength and duration, predict any effects it may have on the environment, and seal it if necessary.Previous laboratory and mesocosm-based research on the effects of CO2 on marine life has shown that it can change the pH of seawater and create localized ‘ocean acidification’ conditions, which appear to be detrimental to many types of benthic (seabed) life. A previous, shallow water experiment, the Quantifying and Monitoring Potential Ecosystem Impacts of Geological Carbon Storage (QICS) project, provided some clues as to the extent, duration and
Kraken Launches OceanVision Project
Starting in late September, Kraken Robotic Systems will deploy its sensors and unmanned underwater platforms to conduct ultra-high definition seabed imaging and mapping on the Grand Banks of Newfoundland and other areas of Atlantic Canada, as part of the initial phase of its $20 million OceanVision project.Kraken’s OceanVision is a three-year project to develop new marine technologies and products to enable an underwater data acquisition and analytics as a service business. Through OceanVision, Kraken aims to accelerate its strategy from sensors and system sales to becoming an integrated provider
#Oi2020 History
2,200 feet below the surface. Among the many tests was the successful, hyperbaric welding of 32-inch pipe at a simulated depth of 985 feet, preparing the way for future pipeline construction and repair.” Marine Technology Reporter has been commissioned to publish the Official “Oceanology International 50th Anniversary Edition” which will distribute with the MARCH 2020 edition of MTR. For information on advertising in this edition, contact Rob Howard @ howard@marinelink.com, t: +1 561-732-4368; or Mike Kozlowski @ kozlowski@marinelink.com, +1-561-733-2477.
ROBOATS: MIT's Shape-Shifting Autonomous Boats
New capabilities allow “roboats” to change configurations to form pop-up bridges, stages, and other structures.MIT’s fleet of robotic boats has been updated with new capabilities to “shapeshift,” by autonomously disconnecting and reassembling into a variety of configurations, to form floating structures in Amsterdam’s many canals.The autonomous boats — rectangular hulls equipped with sensors, thrusters, microcontrollers, GPS modules, cameras, and other hardware — are being developed as part of the ongoing “Roboat” project between MIT and the
MTR100: EvoLogics GmbH
EvoLogics GmbHBerlin, GermanyPresident/CEO: Dr. Rudolf Bannasch, Dr. Konstantin KebkalNo. of Employees: 35https://evologics.de/EvoLogics GmbH is a German high-tech enterprise, founded in 2000 by a group of scientists and R&D experts. The company’s mission is to develop innovative technologies for maritime and offshore industries through interdisciplinary cooperation between engineering and life sciences. The company designs and manufactures underwater information and communication systems based on bionic concepts, combining state-of-the-art engineering with the best ideas found in nature.
USN: Knifefish UUV Program Achieves Milestone
The Program Executive Officer for Unmanned and Small Combatants (PEO USC) granted Milestone C approval to the Knifefish Surface Mine Countermeasure Unmanned Undersea Vehicle Program. The decision clears the way for low-rate initial production (LRIP) of the system, PEO USC announced Aug. 23.The Navy is expected to award a LRIP contract to Knifefish prime contractor General Dynamics Mission Systems.The Knifefish system is designed for deployment from the littoral combat ship (LCS), vessels of opportunity or from shore to detect and classify buried, bottom and volume mines in high-clutter environments.
MTR100: General Dynamics Mission Systems
General Dynamics Mission SystemsQuincy, Mass., President CEO: Chris BradyNo. of Employees: 13,400https://gdmissionsystems.com/en/underwater-vehicles/bluefin-roboticsGeneral Dynamics Mission Systems is an innovator of open architecture and mission integration to meet the most demanding operational requirements on any platform in the multi-domain operational arenas – from the outer reaches of space to the sea floor. In 2016 General Dynamics acquired the unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) provider, Bluefin Robotics, to extend the integration of high consequence solutions to the unmanned undersea
MTR100: Sonardyne International Ltd.
Sonardyne International Ltd.Hampshire, UKJohn Ramsden (Managing Director)Staff: 290 worldwidewww.sonardyne.comFrom the day it was founded close to 50 years ago, Sonardyne’s focus has been customer-driven innovation in our oceans for energy, science and security. Today, it operates on a global scale, providing underwater acoustic, inertial, sonar and optical technologies that are enabling users to position, monitor, measure, detect, image, log, analyze and communicate data, when and where they want in the ocean space.The company is at the forefront of the drive towards safe, efficient and cost
MTR100: National Oceanography Centre (UK)
National Oceanography Centre (UK)Southampton, UKPresident/CEO: Ed Hill OBENo. of Employees: 620www.noc.ac.ukThe National Oceanography Center (NOC) is the UK’s leading institution for integrated coastal and deep ocean research. NOC undertakes and facilitates world-class, agenda-setting scientific research to understand the global ocean by solving challenging multidisciplinary, large scale, long-term marine science problems to underpin international and UK public policy, business and wider societal outcomes. At the Marine Robotics Innovation Center in Southampton, the NOC hosts a community of 28
MTR100: Teledyne Marine
many sensors, sonars, connectors and vehicles to simplify and streamline customers’ technology sourcing, selection and system integration issues.The following are several examples of how Teledyne’s technologies can be combined to solve industry challenges: Increasing understanding of the oceanIn 2019, Teledyne Marine became a partner to the Nekton Deep Ocean Research Institute in support of First Descent, which was a series of exciting expeditions designed to explore and conserve the Indian Ocean. Teledyne Marine supplied a wide array of sensors and technology to empower Nekton’s
MTR100: Five "Ones to Watch"
of 2019 and beyond. For the full edition, see https://magazines.marinelink.com/nwm/MarineTechnology/201907/Blue Logic: Entering a new eraCompletely new modes of operation are entering the underwater domain for oil and gas operations and the tools that are being used could also be used across the ocean space.It’s been called a subsea space race – and it is a little like a Mars mission, with similar communications challenges and questions around power supplies. Various players are working to make it happen. The idea is to have subsea resident vehicles, eliminating the need for manned
MTR100: Kongsberg Maritime
Kongsberg MaritimeHorten, NorwayPresident/CEO: Egil HaugsdalNo. of Employees: 11,000www.kongsberg.com/maritimeKongsberg Maritime’s subsea portfolio includes everything from underwater robots and transponders to hydroacoustic sonar systems and cloud-based infrastructure for data storage and analysis. The company’s subsea portfolio includes single and multibeam echo sounders, sonars, underwater vehicles and subsea transponders and positioning systems, in addition to software and solutions for defense customers. In line with other marine sectors, Kongsberg Maritime is also at the forefront
Saab Seaeye's Falcon for Ocean Research
A Saab Seaeye Falcon electric underwater robotic vehicle is to help support a network of oceanographic and atmospheric sensors that are part of the Ocean Observatories Initiative (OOI) transforming ocean research.Funded by the National Science Foundation, the overall OOI program is managed by Massachusetts-based Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. The moored, mobile autonomous, and cabled sensors provide real-time data access to address critical issues such as climate change, ecosystem variability, ocean acidification, and carbon cycling. The observatory consists of:The Coastal & Global
Subsea Network Repaired in the North Sea
Faulty elements in the subsea network within the Greater Guillemot Area field were diagnosed and replaced within 24 hours of the start of a recent fault-finding campaign, subsea testing tools manufacturer C-Kore Systems said.The GGA area in the UK North Sea is operated by Dana Petroleum with partner Tailwind.C-Kore’s compact Cable Monitor Units are used on fault-finding operations and installation campaigns to test the health of electrical lines by measuring the insulation resistance and electrical continuity. With their Subsea TDR units, faults can be localized with an accuracy of 10cm in the
MTR100: #4 Martin McDonald , SVP, Oceaneering
Martin McDonald , SVP, Oceaneering ... Directing the world’s largest fleet of work class ROVs.The editors of Marine Technology Reporter are pleased to share that Martin McDonald, Oceaneering, is #4 in the 14th Annual "MTR100". The full electronic edition of Marine Technology Reporter is available at https://magazines.marinelink.com/nwm/MarineTechnology/201907/. Oceaneering is a pioneer and leader in the world of subsea robotics, and a ‘by the numbers’ look at the company provides a staggering view. Oceaneering operates a fleet of 275 work class ROVs – the
New Autonomous Vehicle for Offshore Wind Surveys
vessel is propelled by a rigid wing sail while the LiDAR, navigation, and communication systems are powered by deck and sail mounted solar panels and large batteries.In addition, standard integration interfaces enable broad flexibility in sensor payload and survey types such as standard meteorological ocean, bathymetric and hydrographic, current and wave characteristics, avian and marine mammal detection, and alerting.Over the last 18 months, Equinor and AMS have conducted studies and built prototypes to test the system. These have shown dramatic improvements in lead time, cost and areal coverage versus
ARES Security Launches Seaport Platform
US-based ARES Security Corporation has rolled out a new multi-tenant, Software as a Service (SaaS) solution for seaports in the US.The is now offering their Avert C2 (formally CommandBridge) system as a SaaS platform for small and medium sized ports to leverage the powerful capability that has been used by more than a third of the of the largest seaports in the U.S. since 2006, said a press release from the company.The solution is also deployed at several law enforcement, transportation, DoD and other facilities throughout the country.AVERT C2 is a command and control platform that integrates disparate
Bluefin-9 Simplifies Underwater Planning & Monitoring
The Bluefin Operator Tool Suite is a comprehensive software package for underwater missions and is included with the purchase of a Bluefin-9 UUV. This Windows-based tool suite provides everything necessary to run and manage the system, including vehicle check-out and testing, mission planning, vehicle communications, mission monitoring and execution, data management, and post-mission analysis.Mission Planning & VerificationThe Bluefin Mission Planner graphical tool provides an intuitive interface to pre-plan your survey mission. Operators can specify safety settings, operational constraints
MTR100: #1 Wendy Schmidt
The editors of Marine Technology Reporter are pleased to share that Wendy Schmidt, Schmidt Ocean Institute & Schmidt Marine Technology Partners, has taken the top spot in the 14th Annual "MTR100". The full print and electronic edition of Marine Technology Reporter will be available shortly. Until then, presented here is the full story on Wendy Schmidt and the Schmidt Ocean Institute.According to Wendy Schmidt, we live in a pivotal time that requires us to reexamine humanity’s relationship with the ocean. In a fast-paced and changing world, Mrs. Schmidt has emerged as an unlikely
World First: Saildrone Circumnavigates Antarctica
long, wind-powered unmanned surface vehicle (USV) called a saildrone has become the first unmanned system to circumnavigate Antarctica.The vehicle, known as SD 1020, was equipped with a suite of climate-grade sensors and collected data in previously unchartered waters, enabling new key insights into ocean and climate processes.The 196-day mission was launched from Southport in Bluff, New Zealand, on January 19, 2019, returning to the same port on August 3 after sailing over 22,000 km (13,670 miles) around Antarctica. During the mission, the vehicle survived freezing temperatures, 15-meter (50-foot)
Sonsub Hydrone-R Launched in Water
On July 1, Saipem-Sonsub’s Hydrone-R underwater intervention drone was launched in water to start the endurance and qualification tests prior to its commercialization by year’s end.The Hydrone Program is the key workstream of Saipem’s Technology Development Plan within subsea robotics; a strategic move aimed at changing the paradigm of underwater inspections and interventions via a fleet of next-generation drones and advanced ancillary equipment.The Hydrone program, entirely executed by the Sonsub center, encompasses three vehicles, namely Hydrone-R, Hydrone-S and Hydrone-W (link)
WFS Appoints Darroch as CTO
Continuing their ambitious growth plans for 2019, global provider of disruptive wireless subsea internet of things technology, WFS Technologies, has appointed a new Chief Technology Officer to drive its evolving product portfolio and software development roadmap.Jim Darroch has been appointed CTO to own the company’s product vision and roadmap, and to expand the product engineering team to meet growing client demands for its existing product range.WFS allows operators to monitor subsea infrastructures with their patented Seatooth real-time and edge computing sensors that view, detect, measure
Oil Spill Data for Internet-enabled Devices
Global marine monitoring systems manufacturers Ocean Scientific International Ltd (OSIL) can provide oil spill monitoring data and alarms directly to internet-enabled devices from any location with GSM/GPRS or satellite coverage.The non-contact oil spill monitoring systems can be terrestrial or aquatic (using moored floating buoy platforms or fixed stations in shallow waters), and individual sensors can be networked together to cover multiple locations, with a single secure login to view all data.The sensors are equipped with a pulsed UV LED beam and optical photo-detector with on-board software to
#Oi2020 History: ROV D2
created for industrial use--such as internal and external underwater pipeline inspections--ROVs have become a mainstay within underwater exploration, as well as many other scientific applications. To continue the research and technology within this area of subsea development, NOAA’s Office of Ocean Exploration and Research (OER) in 2013 introduced a new ROV, the Deep Discoverer, or “D2.” The ROV, (also known as D2) which operates from NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer, is unique in that it is one of the few ROVs capable of diving to 3.7 miles (6,000 meters). Measuring 10 x 6.5 x 8
New Multibeam Sonar Package Unveiled
The new WASSP F3X professional multibeam sonar package developed by ENL Group, majority-owned by Furuno Electric Company, is designed for for fisherman and mariners who need the ability to see deep into the ocean.The WMB4340 and WMB6340, both available from Furuno, provide superior target detection of fish in the water column, track fish targets deeper than ever before, and allow navigators and surveyors to map the seabed and structure below with confidence, the company said.WASSP F3X penetrates the water in a 120˚ swath with 224 individual beams. Its higher output power provides a nearly 50% increase
RTSYS Debuts Micro-AUV NemoSens
French acoustics specialist RTSYS has launched its latest versatile micro autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) NemoSens, designed to perform numerous civil applications such as seabed imagery, environmental monitoring or wreckage localization.Unveiled after years of development, the flexible new AUV is small (less than 1 meter long) and is easy to carry and launch (less than 20 pounds including payload). Micro-AUV NemoSens can host any kind of payload, be it a CTD probe, sidescan sonar or any other sensors. Thanks to an open LINUX architecture it can be programmed from a ROS or MOOS interface to
Kraken's OceanVision Moving Ahead
Kraken Robotics' OceanVision marine technology development project will move forward with conditional approval – and millions in funding – from Canada's Ocean Supercluster.The three-year, $20 million project is being spearheaded by Kraken subsidiary Kraken Robotic Systems and is focused on the development of new technologies and products to enable an underwater robotics data acquisition and data analytics as a turnkey service solution for ultra-high definition seafloor imaging, mapping and analytics, including simultaneous acquisition of ocean environmental and marine habitat data.
