autonomous VEHICLES
www.vanguardcanada.com OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2016 27
a
• Survey Head Mk 4 – A G882 magne-
tometer as well as a sub-bottom profiler
are featured in addition to the Norbit
wideband multi-beam sonar and video
camera
• Inspection Head AUV – Video camera
mounted on a pan-tilt frame and imag-
ing sonar for inspection
• Water Quality Head – Systems for mea-
suring water quality like dissolved oxy-
gen, hydrocarbons, dissolved organic
matter, turbidity, etc.
• Tunnel Inspection Head – Able to in-
spect autonomously fresh-water supply
ducts over long distances
• Inspection Head ROV – Scanning pre-
defined sections of underwater struc-
tures with a 3D video camera and a high-
frequency multi-beam echo sounder on
a rotating sensor suite
• Geomagnetic Head – Detecting and
mapping all sizes of ferrous objects bur-
ied in the sediment
• Subbottom Head – A Tritech dual-fre-
quency seeking parametric subbottom
profiler enables an acoustic view into the
sediment
the future of auvs
Currently, the unpredictability of the un-
derwater environment, especially those
in regions such as the Arctic, poses some
limiting factors for AUVs. However, ad-
vances in battery and propulsion systems
as well as development of better guid-
ance systems and sensing technologies
will drive the development of AUVs and
catapult unmanned underwater vehicles to
a greater variety of missions, according to
Gerbrecht.
There's also work being done in the
area of CoCoRo or Collective Cognitive
Robotics. Current projects involve work-
ing with miniature underwater robots that
work together as an AUV swarm. Each of
these tiny AUVs is capable of operating on
its own. However a small group of them
can share data among themselves allowing
the entire swarm to "make decisions based
on the collective data," according to the
IEEE Spectrum.
AUV swarms can provide organiza-
tions with a versatile and adaptable fleet
of miniature underwater robots that can
continue working on a mission even if one
or several units fails. One potential appli-
cation is in the area of underwater search
and rescue operations.
"We've just scratched the surface in
terms of how and where AUVs can be de-
ployed," said Gerbrecht.
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SeaCat AUV is fitted with both vertical
and bow thruster technology to provide
undisputed agility and responsiveness
including hover capability.
Photo: ATLAS ELEKTRONIK
