UUV Aquabotix Ltd (ASX:UUV) has recently announced a partnership with Norwegian technology supplier Water Linked AS. As part of the partnership, Aquabotix will integrate the Water Linked Underwater GPS system with its Endura remotely operated vehicle (ROV). This will enable greater underwater positioning for Aquabotix across a wide range of applications, including tank and hull inspections, fish farm exploration and search and recovery missions.
“Water Linked and Aquabotix share a common mission to make underwater missions easier and more effective,” said David Batista, CEO of Aquabotix. “As a technology leader that’s disrupting underwater acoustics through performance, price and physical size, we’re confident that Water Linked’s enhanced positioning capabilities will help generate greater user experiences for our Endura ROV customers.”
Traditionally, smaller ROVs have limited position system options due to their large physical size and high cost. Water Linked’s Underwater GPS system, which relies on acoustics to transmit data through the water, is designed to operate in challenging environments such as water tanks, shallow water within ports, fish cages for aquaculture and environments where existing conventional underwater positioning systems typically break down.
“Aquabotix is at the forefront of underwater robotics and technology,” said Oliver Skisland, CEO of Water Linked. “We look forward to helping Aquabotix build upon their existing positioning capabilities to transform the future of ROV-based inspection and exploration.”
The Endura ROV is easy to use, portable and can be customized with a variety of sensors to complete simple or complex missions, says Aquabotix. Endura maintains an industry-leading five knots of thrust and six degrees freedom of motion to allow users to fly through the water with intuitive controls. The underwater ROV can also be piloted by Aquabotix’s Live Remote Control technology, which enables real-time maneuvering of the vehicle from any web browser-enabled device, remotely, from anywhere in the world.
