60 unmanned systems
inside
April/May 2017
AIR & MARINE ENVIRONMENTAL
year. Most of the testing right now is focused
on the communications link between the ASV
and the AUVs to make sure it's repeatable and
reliable, Hook said.
Planet Ocean set up an R&D; facility in the
NOC's Marine Robotics Innovation Centre,
giving them easy access to large tanks and
the ability to test the AUVs in a variety of
controlled environments, Sloane said. The
AUVs can be taken down to full ocean depth
in salt water where the temperature and other
conditions are constantly changing. Access
to tanks at the University of Southampton
also has made it possible to test the AUVs
in different wave conditions and at different
speeds.
ecoSUB-μ under test in NOC
ballasting tank.
ecoSUB-μ and ecoSUBm.
Photos courtesy of Planet Ocean
" THE WHOLE IDEA IS REALLY
TO MAKE THE USE OF AUV
(AUTONOMOUS SURFACE VEHICLE)
TECHNOLOGY ACCESSIBLE."
Terry Sloane, managing director, Planet Ocean
The Future
Over the course of the project, there's been a
lot of interest in what Planet Ocean and its
partners are developing, Sloane said, from
both those who have technology they want
to contribute and those who are interested in
purchasing a system. It's truly been a collab-
orative project with new challenges presenting
themselves every day, but one that will help re-
duce costs and, once completed later this year,
increase accessibility to AUVs.
"It's a real trend to see different types of
unmanned systems working together," Hook
said. "Often, one type on its own doesn't do
the whole job, but when you add a few systems
together you can really get the task done.
Everyone is interested in saving money and
reducing ship time. This really makes a big
difference on cost."