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A San Diego tech company has developed under-water robots for the US Marine Corps that will help the military clear sea mines and reduce the dangers of explosive disposal missions.
Greensea IQ describes its latest innovation –– Bayonet 250 –– as an “all-around workhorse” designed for navigating harsh surf zones and ocean floors down to depths of 100 meters or more than 300 feet.
Following the mine-clearing operations that intensified in the volatile Strait of Hormuz in April this year, the US Navy finalized a whopping $18 million deal with the defense tech firm last month.
“It’s the only system that can operate from the beach head through the surf zone out to deep water or reverse,” Bayonet General Manager and retired US Navy captain Fred Gaghan told NBC San Diego.
It tips the scales at a hefty 450 pounds and spans a 4-foot-by-4-foot footprint — but despite its hulking size, the rugged autonomous vehicle can still be assembled in the field by just two people without the need for tools, according to the company’s website.
The company says that the hazardous tasks that previously required technicians to work from a close distance and often resulted in casualties can be taken over completely by the robot.
“This is saving so many lives by having something like this be able to go down range for us and do this work,” Dennis Doan, product manager for explosive ordnance disposal systems at the company told the news outlet. Doan spent 20 years in the military as a Navy EOD Technician before joining the defense tech company.
The heavy subaquatic robot can withstand severe weather and rough surf while carrying up to 200 pounds of continuous deck payload — such as sensors and mine-detection equipment.
English (US)