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SPURV, or Self-Propelled Underwater Research Vehicle, was an Autonomous Underwater Vehicle built in 1957 at the University of Washington's Applied Physics Laboratory. [1] The research and development of this vehicle was funded by the United States Office of Naval Research (ONR), and it became the US Navy’s first autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV). The navy used a total of 7 SPURV vehicles until 1979. [2]
The original engineers of SPURV were Bob Van Wagennen (mechanical) and Wayne Nodland (electrical). Terry Ewart calculated the hydrodynamics design on a Berkeley EASE analog computer. SPURV was machined by Boeing from a forging of 7078-T6 aluminum.
SPURV had an operating depth of at least 3000 meters and a maximum depth of 3600 meters. It could go about 4-5 knots for about 4 hours. A propulsion battery consisting of 2 sets of 16 silver zinc cells connected in a parallel through diodes was the primary power source for SPURV. The battery provided a 24-volt, 200 ampere-hour supply. Secondary power came from 4 solid-state converters. [1]
Acoustic signals from the accompanying research vessel guided SPURV in moving below the surface of the water. SPURV then generated models of underwater physical properties such as ocean currents and temperature. [3]
SPURV was first operated from the ATA-195, the Navy Seagoing Tug Tatnuck in a 1957 cruise to Cobb Seamount. A tracking system had been built for the Tatnuck by Stan Murphy and Terry Ewart that could plot the range to SPURV on a strip chart recorder and the x-y position on a chart plotter.
The later SPURVS were utilized on 1-2 cruises per year by Terry Ewart and the Applied Physics Lab's Ocean Physics Department Engineers and Research Scientists, conducting about 20 month-long cruises in total to study small scale ocean variability including internal wave and fine-structure data, point source release dye diffusion at 1000 meters, and oceanographic data for acoustic transmission experiments.
In a few operations, two SPURVs were run at once in lock-step, 1 above the other or one beside the other at constant spacings. This was to study spatial coherences of the small scale ocean structure. Most of the SPURVs operated with a vertical rake of temperature and conductivity sensors using what later became the Seabird sensors. In all cases, they could be tracked from the ship—usually with the capability of using a bottom or other reference system, and pitch, roll, and heading corrections for the ship.
The last operation of SPURV was in 1979 in the submarine wake study experiment. APL still has all 5 hulls, but they have not been used since then.
A remotely operated vehicle (ROV) is a free-swimming submersible craft used to perform tasks such as valve operations, hydraulic functions and other general tasks within the subsea oil and gas industry. ROVs can also carry tooling packages for undertaking specific tasks such as pull-in and connection of flexible flowlines and umbilicals, and component replacement.
Kaikō was a remotely operated underwater vehicle (ROV) built by the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC) for exploration of the deep sea. Kaikō was the second of only five vessels ever to reach the bottom of the Challenger Deep, as of 2019. Between 1995 and 2003, this 10.6 ton unmanned submersible conducted more than 250 dives, collecting 350 biological species, some of which could prove to be useful in medical and industrial applications. On 29 May 2003, Kaikō was lost at sea off the coast of Shikoku Island during Typhoon Chan-Hom, when a secondary cable connecting it to its launcher at the ocean surface broke.
An autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) is a robot that travels underwater without requiring continuous input from an operator. AUVs constitute part of a larger group of undersea systems known as unmanned underwater vehicles, a classification that includes non-autonomous remotely operated underwater vehicles (ROVs) – controlled and powered from the surface by an operator/pilot via an umbilical or using remote control. In military applications an AUV is more often referred to as an unmanned undersea vehicle (UUV). Underwater gliders are a subclass of AUVs.
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The Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) is a private, non-profit oceanographic research center in Moss Landing, California. MBARI was founded in 1987 by David Packard, and is primarily funded by the David and Lucile Packard Foundation. Christopher Scholin serves as the institute's president and chief executive officer, managing a work force of approximately 220 scientists, engineers, and operations and administrative staff.
Unmanned underwater vehicles (UUV), sometimes known as underwater drones, are submersible vehicles that can operate underwater without a human occupant. These vehicles may be divided into two categories: remotely operated underwater vehicles (ROUVs) and autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs). ROUVs are remotely controlled by a human operator. AUVs are automated and operate independently of direct human input.
USNS Relentless (T-AGOS-18) was a Stalwart-class modified tactical auxiliary general ocean surveillance ship in service in the United States Navy from 1990 to 1993. Since 1998, she has been in commission in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) fleet as the fisheries research ship NOAAS Gordon Gunter.
Nereus was a hybrid uncrewed autonomous underwater vehicle built by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI). Constructed as a research vehicle to operate at depths of up to 11,000 metres (36,000 ft), it was designed to explore Challenger Deep, the deepest surveyed point in the global ocean. Nereus, named for Greek sea titan Nereus through a nationwide contest of high school and college students, began its deep sea voyage to Challenger Deep in May 2009 and reached the bottom on May 31, 2009.
SPURV II, short for Special Purpose Underwater Research Vehicle, was an Autonomous Underwater Vehicle built at the Ocean Physics Department at the Applied Physics Laboratory at the University of Washington in 1973 to study SSBN wakes.
Explorer autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) is a Chinese AUV developed in the People's Republic of China (PRC),first entering service in November 1994. It should not be confused with another two Anglo-American AUVs that share the same name: the American Autonomous Benthic Explorer AUV (ABE) built by Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, and the British Columbia-based International Submarine Engineeringbuilt Canadian Explorer AUV, which is based on its earlier ARCS AUV.Many Chinese AUVs later developed, such as Wukong, WZODA, CR series, Exploration series, Micro Dragon series, Sea Whale series, Submerged Dragon series AUVs, are all based on experienced gained from Explorer AUV.
ABISMO is a remotely operated underwater vehicle (ROV) built by the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC) for exploration of the deep sea. It is the only remaining ROV rated to 11,000-meters, ABISMO is intended to be the permanent replacement for Kaikō, a ROV that was lost at sea in 2003.
AUV - 150 is an unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) being developed by Central Mechanical Engineering Research Institute (CMERI) scientists in Durgapur in the Indian state of West Bengal. The project is sponsored by the Ministry of Earth Sciences and has technical assistance from IIT-Kharagpur.
The SOLO-TREC is a profiling float that uses a novel thermal recharging engine powered by the natural temperature differences found at different ocean depths to cycle up and down in the ocean. The research and prototype were developed by researchers at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, CA, and the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in San Diego, CA. The project name stands for "Sounding Oceanographic Lagrangrian Observer Thermal RECharging" vehicle.
Liquid Robotics is an American marine robotics corporation that designs, manufactures and sells the Wave Glider, a wave and solar powered unmanned surface vehicle (USV). The Wave Glider harvests energy from ocean waves for propulsion. With this energy source, Wave Gliders can spend many months at a time at sea, collecting and transmitting ocean data.
The Fleet-class unmanned surface vessel, also called the Common Unmanned Surface Vessel (CUSV) and later the Mine Countermeasures Unmanned Surface Vehicle, is an unmanned surface vessel designed for the United States Navy to be deployed from Freedom and Independence-class littoral combat ships and intended to conduct mine and anti-submarine warfare missions. As of 2012 four units of the class have been built; the first was delivered to the U.S. Navy in 2008.
The REMUS series are autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) made by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and designed by their Oceanographic Systems Lab (OSL). More recently REMUS vehicles have been manufactured by the spinoff company Hydroid Inc, which was a wholly owned subsidiary of Kongsberg Maritime. Hydroid was acquired by Huntington Ingalls Industries (HHI) in March 2020. The series are designed to be low cost, they have shared control software and electronic subsystems and can be operated from a laptop computer. They are used by civilians for seafloor mapping, underwater surveying, and search and recovery as well as by several navies for mine countermeasures missions.
A float is an oceanographic instrument platform used for making subsurface measurements in the ocean without the need for a ship, propeller, or a person operating it. Floats measure the physical and chemical aspects of the ocean in detail, such as measuring the direction and speed of water or the temperature and salinity. A float will descend to a predetermined depth where it will be neutrally buoyant. Once a certain amount of time has passed, most floats will rise back to the surface by increasing its buoyancy so it can transmit the data it collected to a satellite. A float can collect data while it is neutrally buoyant or moving through the water column. Often, floats are treated as disposable, as the expense of recovering them from remote areas of the ocean is prohibitive; when the batteries fail, a float ceases to function, and drifts at depth until it runs aground or floods and sinks. In other cases, floats are deployed for a short time and recovered.
Underwater domain awareness (UDA) is the aspect of maritime domain awareness focused on the underwater sector, including, from a security perspective, sea lines of communication (SLOC), coastal waters and varied maritime assets with reference to hostile intent and the proliferation of submarine and mine capabilities intended to limit access to the seas and littoral waters. The military requirement is not the only motivation for undersea domain awareness. The earth's undersea geophysical activities as they relate to the well-being of humans is also relevant, as monitoring such activities can provide vital clues to minimize the impact of devastating natural disasters.
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An underwater survey is a survey performed in an underwater environment or conducted remotely on an underwater object or region. Survey can have several meanings. The word originates in Medieval Latin with meanings of looking over and detailed study of a subject. One meaning is the accurate measurement of a geographical region, usually with the intention of plotting the positions of features as a scale map of the region. This meaning is often used in scientific contexts, and also in civil engineering and mineral extraction. Another meaning, often used in a civil, structural, or marine engineering context, is the inspection of a structure or vessel to compare actual condition with the specified nominal condition, usually with the purpose of reporting on the actual condition and compliance with, or deviations from, the nominal condition, for quality control, damage assessment, valuation, insurance, maintenance, and similar purposes. In other contexts it can mean inspection of a region to establish presence and distribution of specified content, such as living organisms, either to establish a baseline, or to compare with a baseline.