Among latest additions to growing worldwide development of self-sufficient USVs and AUVs is EchoBoat-G2 developed by California-based Seafloor Systems which the US company says will be available for distribution in Europe via Teledyne Reson’s bases in Denmark, Germany, Netherlands and the UK.

A Seafloor Systems’ EchoBoat-G2 designed for impromptu and routine inspection surveys via remote control,

A Seafloor Systems’ EchoBoat-G2 designed for impromptu and routine inspection surveys via remote control, which will be demonstrated at Ocean Business 2017

Designed for inspection, asset protection and search-and-rescue surveys either remotely or semi-autonomously using so-called mission planner drone software supported by an autopilot module, the unmanned surface vessel includes dual-DC thrusters and an internal plug-and-play survey deck for seamless installation of sonar and navigational monitoring equipment. With the autopilot module operators can pre-plan survey waypoints for uploading to an associated drone vehicle for automatic completion of missions prior to returning to base.

Seafloor Systems plans a series of demonstrations of the lightweight system equipped with INS/GNSS facilities and a sound velocity probe at Ocean Business 2017.

By David Goodfellow