Tritech Tools Assist Winning SAUC-E Teams
Tritech International supported several successful AUV teams at the recent Student Autonomous Underwater Challenge Europe (SAUC-E), in La Spezia, Italy. The competition encourages student engineers to consider underwater technology and its future possibilities, as well as build closer links with organisations involved in underwater robotics. Tritech sensors enhanced the capabilities of competing Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs), specifically designed and built for the challenge.
In first place, the University of Girona's (Spain) winning ‘Sparus' AUV integrated a Micron DST imaging sonar, Tritech's ultra compact mechanical scanning sonar. The Micron contributed to the team's overall success by providing a reliable and accurate obstacle avoidance sensor for the AUV.
Heriot-Watt University (Scotland), were placed second overall and also fitted their vehicle ‘Nessie V' with a Micron DST imaging sonar and Gemini 720i real-time imaging multibeam sonar. The third placed team, ENSIETA (France) used a Tritech sonar on its ‘SAUCISSE' AUV.
In the build-up to the challenge, the nine participating teams were required to submit a technical paper and give presentations describing their design and their planned approach to the missions. The teams were judged on overall performance along with technical merit, safety of design and the craftsmanship and innovation of the AUV.
SAUC-E challenges multi-disciplinary teams of aspiring student engineers to design and build subsea vehicles capable of performing autonomous missions in an underwater environment. Hosted by the NATO Research Centre, SAUC-E '10 was sponsored by the office of Naval Research Global (USA), THALES UK, ACSA Underwater GPS, (France), CSSN (Italian Navy), Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (UK), ECA, (France), Subsea Asset Location Technologies (UK) ad NURC.
