Kongsberg has successfully demonstrated its HUGIN 1000 portable autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) system in Korean waters, south-west of the city of Busan.
The demonstration was carried out by the company in collaboration with the Agency for Defence Development in the Republic of Korea.
During the demonstration, the HUGIN 1000 portable AUV system underwent water trials in up to sea state 4, which covered both search for mines in shallow waters and rapid environmental assessment in deeper waters.
The HUGIN 1000 portable AUV is capable of performing high-speed surveys with navigation and payload data quality down to a depth of 1,000m, the company said.
The vehicle is containerised into one 20ft container for storage, battery management, vehicle maintenance, launch and recovery, and one 10ft container for mission planning, vehicle checkout, mission execution and post-mission analysis.
The AUV system is capable of performing a wide range of operations including MCM, REA, route survey and high-quality bathymetric mapping surveys in areas of interest.
The AUV can be easily mobilised on all vessels and also airlifted anywhere.
The system also features a Kongsberg high-precision acoustic positioning (HiPAP) 350 system and a tow-fish transducer for acoustic communication as well as a Kongsberg SeaPath system for accurate ship reference position and attitude.
The two containers of the system are insulated and equipped with heating systems allowing for operation in Arctic environments, and an air condition system for operation in tropical climates.
