Unmanned Systems Technology 026 I Tecdron TC800-FF I Propellers I USVs I AUVSI 2019 part 1 I Robby Moto UAVE I Singular Aircraft FlyOx I Teledyne SeaRaptor I Simulation & Testing I Ocean Business 2019 report

94 Show report | Ocean Business 2019 Significant engineering work has also focused on reducing the amount of wiring throughout the inside of the hull, to streamline the vehicle’s electronics and reduce their weight. “We’re also looking to integrate additional payloads, including the Nighthawk EO/IR from NextVision and the Sony A7R for still-shot photogrammetry applications,” Chase said. “There are other payloads as well, including a methane sensor for oil and gas inspections – they’ll all be within the 1 kg weight range.” The Swift 021 is designed to perform missions such as fishery surveys, linear infrastructure inspections including pipelines, railways and power lines, and monitoring for piracy and other illegal activities on the oceans. Further specifications for the Swift 021 are expected to be published later this year. Swift Engineering also showcased its Remora towed pH sensor and low-cost commercial-grade buoys for citizen scientists, researchers and academia focused on aquaculture and water quality monitoring. Three prototypes of the Remora system have been built and lab-tested so far, producing measurements of 0.002 accuracy and 0.0001 precision on the pH scale after only one calibration. Marine battery manufacturer SubCtech showcased one of its latest projects, a large AUV battery that is now in series production and can be customised to the requirements of a specific UUV. “The PowerPack has been developed to API17F and Mil-Std-810G, for shock, vibration and other safety factors that are critical to preventing battery failure and vehicle loss when submerged far from the operating station,” said Stefan Marx. “The company commissioning the battery had a number of clear specifications right from the start. Accordingly, this battery model provides 41 kWh within a form factor 1.8 m long and weighing 200 kg in air when installed in its pressure housing.” The PowerPack battery provides 10 kW over a 150 V supply typically, but the architecture can also be configured for 400 and 600 V connections, with energy storage of up to 200 kWh. The system is passively cooled, with piping to the AUV housing as the sole thermal management connection. “With our battery designs, active cooling is generally not required until you get above 50 kW, and no AUV yet requires that much power,” Marx said. Lidar manufacturer Riegl displayed its range of newest solutions for UAV- based marine surveys, with at the forefront the VQ-840-G laser scanner for hydrographic and topographic data gathering. As Dr Martin Pfennigbauer told us, “This system was designed to succeed our BDF-1 bathymetric scanner. It weighs less than 15 kg, which was a key target for ensuring it could be used on heavy- payload UAVs, and we designed it to achieve a pulse repetition rate of up June/July 2019 | Unmanned Systems Technology Riegl’s UAV-mounted Lidar mounted on its RiCopter-M UAV SubCtech’s battery provides 41 kWh