Houston Mechatronics Unveils Underwater Robot

Houston Mechatronics announced their revolutionary new subsea robot, AQUANAUT at XPONENTIAL 2018. It is a multipurpose subsea robot, which employs a patented shape-shifting transformation from an Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) to a Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV), removing the need for vessels and tethers. The vehicle enables both the efficient collection of data over long distances as well as manipulation of subsea objects at a significantly lower cost than today’s technology, according to the company.

“We firmly believe that this technology is a revolution in subsea robotics. AQUANAUT, and our tightly coupled over-the-horizon software Commander, enables Houston Mechatronics to deliver more feature rich, safer subsea services to commercial and defence customers that demand it,” Houston Mechatronics CEO Matthew Ondler, said. “Our team developed some of the most advanced robots that NASA ever produced and has been developing advanced subsea robotics technology for confidential customers for years. AQUANAUT represents the pinnacle of our company’s expertise and experience and we are beyond excited to introduce this vehicle to customers.”

AQUANAUT was designed to operate over-the-horizon with onshore operator supervision. “We have removed the need for onsite vessels (and people) from subsea work while still maintaining the operator’s situational awareness and the ability to modify missions, which our customers demand. Our capability can truly transform industries. For the warfighter, this means increasing the standoff distance therefore resulting in safer conditions,” he concluded.

XPONENTIAL 2018 (auvsiXPO) is showcasing the future of innovation across the unmanned sector and www.monch.com brings together key developments from the show. For more information please see MILITARY TECHNOLOGY #5/2018, available at the show and frequently check back for more NEWS FROM THE FLOOR.