Saab Seaeye Delivers Electric Manipulator Arm Breakthrough

What is reported to be the world’s first seven-function all-electric work-class manipulator has been developed by Saab Seaeye. According to the manufacturer, this breakthrough heralds a significant advance in underwater robotic technology in the growing electric tooling and vehicle market.
The all-electric work-class seven-function manipulator is designed to have equal power and more precision, delivering a ‘more intelligent’ in comparison to the hydraulic equivalent.

Its control system enables both manual and automated control, with the potential for full autonomy in the future.

Millimeter precision comes from each of the seven joint modules having its own self-contained smart distributed microprocessor designed to deliver intelligent, intuitive and precise arm control. According to SaabSeaeye this delivers exacting, repeatable, precision which can predict limb motion paths for self-collision avoidance, adjusts movement requests to meet available power and collates joint data for unified control.

Included in the design is an adaptable power input system with advanced power management to limit peaks in power demand and manage regenerative loads. Tested through many million cycles, the titanium built eManip’s planned reliability is aimed at reducing operating costs.

Reduced maintenance and reliability improvements through electrification has created a system that, in addition to conventional ROV deployment, is suited to onshore control with USV deployment or long term immersion with resident systems.  

The eManip’s intuitive control simplifies use of the manipulator by mimicking the movement of the master arm. Algorithms also predict and manage movement at each joint.  

Designed to be future friendly - including the potential for interchanging the jaws with other tools - eManip’s advanced technology will enable the transition from manual control to supervised autonomy with advanced perception systems, towards full autonomy.