Following 18 months of research, development, trials and testing, Ocean Infinity, the next generation sub-sea technology and data company, has announced advances in the development of battery technology for autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs).
Aimed at improving the safety, efficiency, and quality of AUV operations, the work has been carried out in partnership with Kraken Robotics, the marine technology company dedicated to the production and sale of software-centric sensors, pressure tolerant batteries, underwater robotic systems and data analytics as a service.
Ocean Infinity’s new 6,000m pressure-tolerant batteries enable greater endurance and efficiency of its HUGIN AUVs, enabling missions to be conducted across a period of more than four days without a battery change.
The technology, partnered with Ocean Infinity’s multi-AUV operation, also increases the possible survey range to nearly 700km per AUV, providing the industry with a revolutionary survey platform offering.
“[These] test results mark a milestone achievement,” said Josh Broussard, Ocean Infinity’s chief technical officer. “Our new, groundbreaking battery technology has effectively doubled the vehicles’ endurance and capacity to collect data in a single deployment. We now have the capability to conduct AUV missions of over four days duration without the need for a battery recharge or change out.”
By deploying this technology, Ocean Infinity are able to reduce launch and recovery operations by 50% and in turn provide a safer, more efficient, and more weather tolerant operation for their clients.
“Kraken was excited by the opportunity to work with OI to develop new batteries for their vehicles,” said David Shea, Kraken’s Senior VP Engineering. “Our objective was to deliver a drop-in solution for the OI HUGIN AUVs, and we achieved our objectives to enable over 100 hours operational endurance in a single charge. Combining Kraken’s pressure tolerant encapsulation technology with OI’s operational experience and technical team, we collaborated to achieve a robust battery solution that can work across their whole fleet of AUVs.”