Sea Technology

AUG 2012

The industry's recognized authority for design, engineering and application of equipment and services in the global ocean community

Issue link: http://sea-technology.epubxp.com/i/77248

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Navigation

Page 43 of 79

"With this survey, it became possible to inspect the Albstollen water-supply tunnel in Germany. " After disinfection, the vehicle was ST ad lowered into the inflow reservoir at Bütt - nau and guided into the tunnel by re- mote control. For the first 300 meters, the SeaCat was controlled through a laptop via a fiber-optic cable. After the vehicle had passed several obstacles in the first section, the cable was cut and the au- tonomous guidance system was acti- vated to take control for the next seven hours and 24 kilometers. The vehicle speed was about 1 meter per second, corresponding to about 2 knots, or 3.6 kilometers an hour. The SeaCat team designed a cus- tomized inspection head to allow the recording of high-resolution video throughout the length of the tunnel, while the vehicle moved continuously through the tunnel and remained cen- tered with the aid of optical distance sen- sors. Survey Completion The exit point was the shaft surge chamber at Talheim in Baden-Württem- berg, a concrete structure comprising a shaft 38 meters deep and about 8 meters in diameter. This pressure-balancing well is normally half-filled with water. The water tunnel is routed through the well, forming a semicircular channel at the bottom. A diver's lamp was positioned at this point to provide a light indicating that the AUV had reached its final desti- nation. This visual signal was detected by the vehicle, causing the autonomous guidance system to stop the vehicle and let it rise to the surface. The mission demonstrated the techni- cal reliability of the SeaCat and showed that the water tunnel was still in good condition after 40 years of continuous use. Jörg Kalwa has been working at Atlas Elek- tronik for the past decade on the definition and development of UUVs, presently focusing on product development for the SeaCat AUV. As systems engineer, his experience comprises hydrodynamics, navigation, communication, sensor integration and software for au- tonomous behavior.

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