Innova AS, a specialist subsea engineering and technology company based in Norway, has selected acoustic and inertial navigation technology from Sonardyne International Ltd., for two new in-field resident ROVs (Remotely Operated Vehicles) being built in the country.
Each ROV will be installed with a co-housed Sonardyne SPRINT Inertial Navigation System (INS) and Syrinx Doppler Velocity Log (DVLs) to provide tightly coupled navigation data that will support a wide variety of survey and inspection missions in water depths up to 4,000 metres.
The contract was announced on the opening day of the Seabed Mapping and Inspection conference which is taking place this week in Geilo, Norway (8th-10th February). The two ROVs are being built by IKM Technology, this time for delivery to IKM Subsea, who has contracted Innova to supply various on-board sensors, including the navigation system, as part of the vehicle’s development programme.
The all-in-one design of SPRINT-Nav makes installation on AUVs and ROVs straightforward, saves payload space and importantly, improves subsea navigation integrity. The design also features a high accuracy pressure sensor which can be removed in the field for re-calibration and still allow the SPRINT-Nav unit to be deployed.
Introduced onto the market over 10 years ago, Sonardyne’s SPRINT makes optimal use of acoustic aiding from data sources including USBL, LBL and DVL and pressure sensors to improve the accuracy, precision and reliability of subsea vehicle positioning. Innova’s client will be among the first to benefit from Sonardyne’s third generation SPRINT which is smaller than previous models and features dual data outputs to support Survey and ROV teams working concurrently. Syrinx DVL provides tight beam-level aiding to SPRINT, allowing for unprecedented positioning performance, even if one or two DVL beams are unavailable. It differs from other 600 kHz DVLs on the market in that it offers a high altitude (up to 175 metres) navigation capability normally only available from a 300 kHz DVL with the high precision and accuracy of a 1200 kHz DVL- all whilst navigating over undulating and challenging terrain of any type.
[blockquote author=” Sven Eivind Torkildsen Sales Manager for Innova AS “]”Throughout this project, flexibility, cost-effectiveness and performance have been key factors in selecting the technology for our client’s new ROVs. SPRINT-Nav meets all these requirements – and many more besides – so we had no hesitation in specifying it”[/blockquote]
Alan MacDonald, Sales Manager with Sonardyne in Aberdeen said that the company was, “very much looking forward to supporting Innova during the vehicle integration and sea acceptance testing phases of the project.”