Blue Robotics is exhibiting in Kobe, Japan at this week’s OCEANS’18 MTS/IEEE Kobe/Techno-Ocean 2018 conference. Stop by if you have a chance!
NEW – Newton Gripper
New from Blue Robotics – the Newton Subsea Gripper! The Newton Gripper provides the BlueROV2 and other subsea vehicles with the ability to interact with the subsea environment to retrieve objects, attach recovery lines, or free a snagged tether.
Blue Robotics’ gripper is the result of several years of work and iterations, evolving into a sealed design which is strong, simple, and affordable. The gripper is ready to use with the BlueROV2 or can be integrated into almost any other ROV and is rated to 300m depth. It uses a standard servo-style PWM control signal just like Blue Robotics’ thrusters and 9-18v power input.
Local Council gets BlueROV2
NZ’s Hawkes Bay Regional Council has their own BlueROV2 to allow their coastal and marine scientists to map local sub-tidal habitats and conduct underwater inspections themselves. Full article at: Scoop Regional 17may18
HBRC Science staff Anna Madarasz-Smith and Shane Gilmer with Big Blue
Photo Credit: Scoop Independent News
Rock pool creatures
For those who like playing “Where’s Wally”, can you spot any of the following:
Seastars (likely Meridiastra calcareous)
Elephant snail (Scutus antipodes)
Purple urchin (Heliocidaris erythrogramma)
Barnacles (Cirripedia species)
Limpets
Seaweed and crayweed
Mulberry whelk (Morula marginalba) and other sea snails
Fogging fix
Fogging can be a real problem because it interferes with visibility. Humidity and condensation will always be an issue because of air to water temperature differentials, so minimising moisture in the housings is essential. the problem can be minimised with a little effort, especially since we can easily access the BlueROV2 internals. Using one or both of the methods listed below has the optimum outcome for the greatest variety of environmental conditions.
1 – equalise the ROV in dehumidified room: in a small room with a dehumidifier, remove the electronics enclosure vent plug and leave the ROV to equalise for several hours. You may find similar results in a well air conditioned room overnight, depending on relative humidity.
2 – desiccant: use desiccant to remove humidity from the electronics enclosure. We suggest rechargeable, moisture indicating, silica gel, which you can purchase through us or other suppliers.
Enjoy!