Underwater

University of Maryland wins Unmanned Underwater Vehicle competition

The University of Maryland has won the 11th Annual International Autonomous Underwater Vehicle Competition, in San Diego California. The event is organized by the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International and the Office of Naval Research, and challenges universities to design and build an AUV capable of navigating realistic underwater missions. Read More

Anaconda aims for affordable wave power

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A giant rubber tube known as the “Anaconda” may present an viable solution to the challenge of generating electricity from the power of ocean waves. Under development in the UK, the simple design means it would be cheap to manufacture and maintain, resulting in clean electricity at a lower cost than other types of wave based energy production. Read More

Robofish demonstrate group communication

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Scientists at the University of Washington have created a sub-surface robot that uses fins instead of propellers, and is able to wirelessly communicate enough information to move in tandem with other units. The Robofish is roughly the size of a 10-pound salmon and will be used to track animals and map the bottom of the ocean. Read More

iRobot announces entry into underwater vehicle market

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Best known for its ventures in land-based military vehicles and home-helper robots, iRobot has now branched out into the autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) market. The company will commercialize "Seaglider" technology from the University of Washington, a system which assists civilian, academic and military personnel in taking oceanographic measurements at a lower cost than traditional research vessels or moored instruments. Read More

Aquatic audio: Natalie Coughlin Signature Series iSH2 waterproof headset

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April 13, 2008 We've written before about H2O Audio's waterproof iPod accessories that let you pump out some good adrenaline tunes while you push through your swimming workout. Now, as America, China and Australia prepare to do battle for aquatic world supremacy in Beijing, the company has teamed with U.S. backstroke world record holder Natalie Coughlin to produce the iSH2 - an integrated waterproof case and headset for the iPod shuffle that works up to 10 feet (3m) under water. Read More

Extreme swimming pools: the biggest and deepest dips on the planet

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February 28, 2008 Looking to beat the heat this summer by installing your own swimming pool? We thought we would give you a taste of what you almost certainly can't have when designing your dream backyard aquatic paradise. Firstly, there's the world's largest pool with an area equivalent to an incredible 6,000 standard-size 26 ft long domestic pools located at the San Alfonso Del Mar resort in Chile, and, going to the other extreme, there's Belgium's amazing 100 foot deep, 660,000 gallon (and heated!) Nemo33 dive pool. Read More

Energy Island: unlocking the potential of the ocean as a renewable power source

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January 29, 2008 Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion uses the temperature difference between surface and deep-sea water to generate electricity – and though it has an efficiency of just 1-3% - researchers believe an OTEC power plant could deliver up to 250MW of clean power, equivalent to one eighth of a large nuclear power plant, or one quarter of an average fossil fuel power plant. Architect and engineer Dominic Michaelis and his son Alex, along with Trevor Cooper-Chadwick of Southampton University are developing the concept with plans of putting the theory to the test on an unprecedented scale by building a floating, hexagonal Energy Island that will harness energy from OTEC, as well as from winds, sea currents, waves, and the sun. Read More

Cayago Magnum: turning Navy Seals into dolphins?

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October 10, 2007 The Seabob electric underwater propulsion device captured our imagination earlier in the year, acting like a 20kmh powered bodyboard and allowing users to dart along coral reefs and the ocean floor like they were born with fins. We’ve since discovered that the company has now produced a souped up version called the Cayago Magnum with 2½ times the available power or endurance. With the existing Seabob models already setting a pretty thrilling pace for leisure use, the high performance Magnum will be pitched as a military and special forces tool that will enable operatives to move exceptionally quickly from point to point, underwater and in total silence. Read More

Lockheed Martin showcases air, water and underwater unmanned vehicles

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August 21, 2006 Lockheed Martin telegraphed its intention to become a significant supplier of unmanned systems technology during a press briefing at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. this week. In showcasing its latest developments in unmanned systems technology and its progress into the future net-enabled environment, it discussed a broad range of unmanned and autonomous technologies, from the recently introduced Polecat and other unmanned aerial systems, to surface vessels such as the Protector (covered earlier this week here) and subsurface prowlers, such as the Sea Talon. During the conference Lockheed VP Frank Murno acknowledged that the company was considering a hybrid version of its F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter – where it could be operated with or without a human pilot as required. Read More

New helmet enables normal breathing underwater

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May 12, 2006 Jules Verne would be proud. Columbian start-up Aquanautas has created a new method of enjoying underwater activities without the need for scuba gear, tanks, masks and regulators. By wearing on of the company’s new helmets, a human can breath underwater as they would on the surface. The Aquanautas is designed primarily for tourism-related activities such as resorts and aquariums and is suitable for anyone over the age of 12. Indeed, you don’t even need to know how to swim or even remove your glasses. they only need to wear a swim suit and a pair of sandals. Aquanautas is seeking international distribution and pilot sites. Read More

Unmanned Underwater Vehicle to operate from the torpedo tubes of U.S. Navy Submarines

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April 6, 2006 We’ve all held our breath in the movies as the submarine with the good guys in it slides between the mines, touching a chain here and there to heighten the drama. In the future, that scenario will need to be rewritten as it’s likely that an unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) will be fired from the torpedo tubes well in advance of a minefield and scope out exactly where the mines are. Make that the not-too-distant future because Boeing is already into a second round of at-sea tests of its Long-term Mine Reconnaissance System (LMRS). The LMRS is a 20-foot UUV designed to be launched, torpedo-style, from Los Angeles- and Virginia-class submarines and can survey the murky waters ahead for up to 60 hours. Originally planned for use in detecting tethered and bottom mines, the vehicle is designed to gather data and, upon completion, to home and dock to the submarine's 60-foot robotic arm for recovery back through the torpedo launch tube, enabling operators to retrieve data collected and prepare the vehicle for another launch. The vehicle's intelligence gathering capabilities have been sequentially tested and validated. Read More

The Talisman Autonomous Underwater System

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March 24, 2006 We hear a lot about Unmanned Aerial vehicles from the size of a butterfly to a full blown jet, and unmanned ground vehicles have been getting their share of the limelight recently too. So it figures that Unmanned Underwater Vehicles would soon become commercially available too. BAE Systems launched an autonomous unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) Talisman at Oceanology International 2006 earlier this week and like its cousins, the latest-generation modular multi-role UUV Talisman is equally omnipotent and capable of a wide range of maritime littoral operations. Talisman comprises the vehicle and a remote control console. The vehicle is based on an innovatively-shaped carbon fiber composite hull, equipped with internal carbon fiber composite pressure vessels containing the electronics systems and payload. The hull is fitted with commercial-off-the-shelf vectorable thruster pods, which allow it to maneuver very accurately, hover and turn 360 within its own length. The hull has been designed and manufactured by stealth aircraft technology experts at the BAE Systems military aircraft sites at Warton and Samlesbury, U.K. Read More

Likeafish extracts air from water to enable a new paradigm in underwater exploration and living

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February 3, 2006 Air and water are two of life's staples - interestingly, two of the best ideas we've ever written up involve both. Airwater machines extract water from the air and now there's a machine which can extract air from water, on-the-fly. Isreali company LikeAFish has developed a new technology which will enable a new paradigm in underwater exploration and living. Likeafish’s tankless diving technology is able to extract air from water and could revolutionise scuba diving, offering unlimited dive time and no need for expensive and inconvenient refills. The appropriately-named company uses a method similar to a fish’s gills to extract the dissolved air present in all seawater to offer an indefinitely sustainable supply of oxygen to scuba divers, submarines and underwater habitats. The device uses a battery-powered centrifuge to lower the pressure of seawater in a sealed chamber, enabling the air to escape, in a similar manner to opening a bottle of lemonade. After separation in the centrifuge, the air is transferred to an air bag for use by the diver. The first unit will be installed in Lloyd Godson’s BioSUB this year – the BioSUB is the world’s first self-sufficient, self-sustaining underwater habitat. Read More

Underwater mask offers five times the view of conventional masks

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Snorkelling and diving is fun, but with the narrow view afforded by most dive masks, situational awareness and hence safety is greatly restricted. For over a decade, it has been Jon Kranhouse’s mission to revolutionize underwater vision and to perfect his designs, Kranhouse hired the same engineers NASA sought to fix the once-fuzzy Hubble Space Telescope. It worked, and Hydrooptix’ first mask lets divers have a view almost five times wider than the view available through conventional flat masks and the vision is completely distortion free, significantly improving the vision, enjoyment, safety and situational awareness of the wearer. Read More

Olympus gets serious underwater

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July 2, 2005 Maybe we’ve been leading a sheltered life but when the new PT-E01 underwater case crossed the Gizmag editorial desk, we were mightily impressed. Here was a device that enabled you to take an 8 megapixel Olympus E-300 digital SLR camera safely underwater, with a range of lens ports to enable different lenses to be used, plus an entire flash set-up. Then we started looking at the market and found that although the PT-E01 underwater case system and its parts are genuine Olympus accessories, that’s about all that’s unique – the growth of the digital photography marketplace over the last few years has seen underwater casings developed for all the major digital SLR cameras on the market and underwater cases are now available for most popular pocket digital cameras and even camera phones too. The pricing at the SLR end of the digital camera range isn’t for struggling amateurs, but complete technical control can be had, even if you’re 60 metres underwater. Read More

These pictures were taken underwater with a mobile phone!

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May 29, 2005 A new shockproof and waterproof casing that fits 95% of all cell phones has been released onto the German market for a price under 50 Euros. The WaveCase is so waterproof that it can be used underwater, turning the average cameraphone into an underwater camera capable of catching your holiday snaps above and below the water. As the casing is impervious to water to a depth of 20 metres, it is also ideal for protecting your converged device from sand, dust, rain and maybe even taking your phone surfing with you. Read More

Fuel cell submarines offer underwater stealth

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November 7, 2004 While fuel cell automobiles promise reduced emissions on land, the high seas have long enjoyed a virtual amnesty from air emission regulations. There is no effective way to regulate pollution emmissions from ships, yet the fuel cell has a bright future under the water as the best alternative to nuclear energy. The fuel cell has many advantages for submarines, the most compelling being that of completely silent running. A fuel cell submarine such as the new 212 and 214 from HDW can lurk beneath the waves invisibly for three weeks at a time. Unlike other non-nuclear submarine variants such as gas turbine and diesel engines, fuel cells can also be distributed throughout a ship for increased design flexibility, which in turn reduces shipbuilding costs. The company that makes this new monster also made the world's first wartime submarine, and is now offering retrofits. Read More

US $17,000 Scuba-Doo underwater scooter

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November 2, 2004 Scuba-Doo International is set to release a suite of products around its new Scuba-Doo underwater scooter. The completely redesigned underwater scooter is now part of a complete range of marine leisure craft that create turnkey marine leisure businesses including the Diver-Doo mobile launching and diving pontoon, the Adventure-Doo boat with underwater glass viewing area and a beach launching platform that enables the Scuba-Doo to be launched by one person. The Adventure-Doo retails for US$48,000 ($46,000 for the four passenger version), with the detachable platform adding US$2000 and of course you'll need two Scuba-Doos with that, so add another US$17,000 each. Read More

Iriver appropriately launches underwater MP3 player

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Music has been land-locked too long so we can all be thankful of today's announcement in the US by iRiver that it will launch, in conjunction with H2O Audio, the H2O Audio SV i700, a fully waterproof MP3 player accessory. The H2O Audio SV i700 is designed specifically for iRiver iFP-700 series flash-memory music players. Read More

World's First Underwater MP3 Player uses bone conduction

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A final year design student at Brunel University (UK) has created an underwater MP3 player. Showcased at the Brunel University Design Show, the underwater music machine which has been dubbed 'Soundwaves' has already won inventor Sam Jones an AOL Broadband Innovator Award. Read More

Versatile Underwater Camera

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The Underwater Cam from Swann records up to 4 hours of sub-marine action to a depth of 16m in colour and connects to camcorders, TVs, VCRs, portable monitors and LCD Screens with AV inputs. Read More

Tyger-Ray underwater scooter

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Tyger-Ray is an electric underwater scooter designed for use during snorkelling or diving that not only increases dive time by saving energy, and therefore oxygen, but also lets you throw underwater loops and somersaults to depths of up to 38 metres. Travelling at 4 kph above and below the surface when used by an average-sized person, the rechargeable 12 volt system delivers a run-time of more than 60 minutes under typical conditions. Read More

Scuba-Doo Underwater Motorcycle

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Scuba-Doo Motorised Scuba Bike opens a new dimension of underwater exploration by combining a fixed breathing dome that covers the head and shoulders with a highly-manoeuvrable, motorised underwater "motorcycle". Read More

Wet PC underwater computing

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Originally conceived and developed at the Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS), the WetPC underwater computer combines a comprises a miniature PC with a mask-mounted virtual display and a unique 5-button chordic graphical user interface... Read More