REMUS 6000 – the deepest member of Hydroid's growing family of Autonomous Underwater Vehicles – AUVs!
The REMUS 6000 AUV was designed under a cooperative program involving the Naval Oceanographic Office, the Office of Naval Research, and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution – WHOI, in support of deep-water autonomous operations. The REMUS 6000 AUV boasts the same proven software and electronic subsystems found in our highly successful REMUS 100 AUV, with a depth rating, endurance, and payload that allow for autonomous operations in up to 6000 meters of water.
The REMUS 6000 has been designed to enable operations to water depths as great as 6000 meters. The compact design requires minimal deck space. The field exchangeable batteries provide long mission duration with the flexibility to perform continuous operations.
The REMUS 6000 can be configured to include a wide range of customer-specified sensors. Its sensor suite can even be reconfigured in the field to meet specific, and varied, mission requirements.
The REMUS 6000 incorporates the same proven Vehicle Interface Program (VIP) used in the complete family of REMUS vehicles. The highly refined VIP makes vehicle maintenance, checkout, mission planning and data analysis fast and easy. Windows® operation, quick-look indicators, quality control checks and a sophisticated data export capability all add to the user-friendly nature of this software package.
The REMUS 6000 Launch and Recovery System (LARS) is designed to function off the stern of the ship but has the option of side launch when used with our rotation table. This is a big advantage for ships of opportunity and vessels where the stern is already in use with other systems.
Certain Hydroid AUVs can be configured with autonomous docking capability. The systems includes:
The REMUS 6000 is based on the same leading-edge technology that has brought the REMUS 100 to the forefront of autonomous operations. With hundreds of thousands of REMUS mission hours to date, Hydroid has become a leading supplier of AUV systems.
71 cm (28 in)
396 m (13 ft)
862 kg (1900 lbs)
6000 meters (4000 meter configuration also available)
12 kWh rechargeable Li-ion battery pack for two pressure housings; a second 12 kWh set can be purchased as an option with system permitting 2-hour turn around; charge time is typically 8 hours and the batteries are rechargeable up to 300 cycles or for 5 years under recommended storage conditions
Typical mission duration of 22 hours. Subject to speed & sensor configuration
Direct drive DC brushless motor to an open 2 bladed propeller
Up to 2.3 m/s (4.5 knots) variable over range
2 coupled yaw and pitch fins-altitude, depth, yo-yo, & track-line following provided
2 connectors, one for shore power and one for shore data. Alternatively, 802.11G wireless network provided via dorsal fin antenna
Ground fault, leak and low voltage detection and go/no go indicator
Long Baseline Transducer (7-15 kHz upward looking transducer) & Dead Reckon with ADCP Inertial Navigation System (INS)
Acoustic modem, Iridium, modem and 802.11G Wi-Fi
27 kg (50 pounds)(in water)
Over centered lifting frame; vehicle is in vertical orientation for launch & recovery; other options available on request
VIP-based laptop interface for programming, training, post-mission analysis, documentation, maintenance, & troubleshooting
The REMUS 6000 utilizes essentially the same Vehicle Interface Program (VIP) as our proven REMUS 100 AUV. This highly intuitive VIP greatly simplifies vehicle maintenance, mission planning, vehicle checkout, and data analysis; and will run on any PC or laptop operating under Windows.® Communication between the vehicle and the host is conducted via a standard Ethernet connection. Among other features, the VIP includes:
All Hydroid AUVs have core systems designed to monitor the status and operation of essential components. Health monitoring includes batteries, motors, sensors and communications as well as conditions such as depth or water ingress. If an abnormality is detected, then an alarm is raised. During supervised missions this will be transmitted to the operator enabling them to decide if the vehicle should return from its mission. When the vehicle is operating autonomously, the response to an alarm is determined by the preselected response listed in the mission plan. This could include an emergency abort to preserve vehicle security.
Operators can monitor the AUV’s progress and status via an acoustic link. This also enables amendments to the mission plan to be sent to the vehicle along with position updates if required. The HiPAP or Ranger positioning systems provide acoustic aiding to the on-board IMU and DVL equipment to make the realtime position solution as accurate as possible. Some Hydroid AUVs also transmit real-time side scan and bathymetry data back to the operator acoustically. This data is displayed on the payload computer screen to give the operations team confidence that the mission is progressing as planned and there are no gaps in the data. When the AUVs are on the surface, they can communicate via Wi-Fi or radio with the operator. They are also equipped with GPS receivers to update the IMU position with the most accurate information available.
To assist with emergency localization and recovery operations, the AUVs can be equipped with emergency radio beacons, strobe lights and satellite communications. In the event of an emergency ascent, the position and status of the vehicle can be sent via the Iridium network to the operators and home base simplifying postemergency localization. If two-way satellite communication is enabled, a revised mission plan can be sent to the vehicle from anywhere in the world.