Uncrewed Systems Technology 048 | Kodiak Driver | 5G focus | Tiburon USV | Skypersonic Skycopter and Skyrover | CES 2023 | Limbach L 2400 DX and L 550 EFG | NXInnovation NX 100 Enviro | Solar power focus | Protegimus Protection

50 Digest | SWL Robotics Tiburon incredibly good conditions for most anything our prospective customers might want for their data needs – there’s absolutely no disturbance anywhere in the fields of our sensors.” The Tiburon is now in its third iteration, with the first and second prototypes having been developed in 2018 and 2020 respectively. Enrique notes that a fourth version is in the works that will feature some subsystem changes, but that the design and technological principles of the USV are now tested, validated and largely matured. All the additions for the fourth and final version are largely complete and set to be integrated later this year; sales are expected not long after if the trials go according to plan. As per the airboat design philosophy, a propeller sits on top of a short arm at the rear end of the hull, with a camera mast in the middle that mounts four HD cameras for producing the 360o 1080p video which Enriquez and his father prized in the 360-ROV and in the UAVs designed at their former company. Inside the hull sit all the electric and electronic systems. These include a Cube Orange flight controller as the main computer, a fanless solid-state drive, an industrial computer from Neousys Technology for recording videos from the onboard cameras, control and comms routing, a battery pack with 23 Ah of capacity and 600 Wh of energy, and navigation and comms systems. The hull itself is made from carbon fibre and several additively manufactured metal parts. In his materials engineering days, Enriquez Snr made numerous advances in additive manufacturing (AM), so this is a major area of SWL’s competencies. Airboat powertrain The choice of airboat propulsion configuration arose partially out of SWL’s initial wish to be different fromwell- known autonomous vessels in the US, such as Maritime Tactical Systems’ high- speed, highly aero and hydrodynamic watercraft and Saildrone’s wind and solar-powered boats (as featured in UST 38, June/July 2021). “We looked around, and our eyes landed on the Everglades, where airboats are a very successful vehicle, with good reason,” Enriquez says, referring to the area’s shallow, marshy waters and the dangers of using submerged thrusters there. Such thrusters can be damaged or cause harm to marine flora or fauna, a paramount concern for many of SWL’s customers regarding autonomous boats. “Airboat propulsion also enables the Tiburon to manoeuvre in shallow or debris-prone environments such as the canals around Miami, where some of our local universities want to run pollution tracking and clean-up efforts. That made us realise the airboat configuration’s advantage in high- resolution hydrography.” In its present configuration, the Tiburon’s power comes from a shrouded propeller driven directly by a 400 WBLDC electric motor. The motor sits in the hub of the propeller and on top of a small vertical arm roughly the same height as the shroud’s radius, with the arm on top of a rotating base. The base is servo- actuated to provide the vessel’s steering. The propeller meanwhile has a diameter of 20 cm and a pitch and geometry optimised for torque, in order to carry heavy sensors while avoiding high February/March 2023 | Uncrewed Systems Technology The Tiburon’s small size enables it to be easily transported and deployed from a larger boat (crewed or uncrewed), be it in closed, shallow waters or the open ocean Airboats are a very successful vehicle on the Everglades, and airboat propulsion enables the Tiburon to manoeuvre in debris-prone areas such as the canals around Miami