Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV)

AUVs TAKE THE PLUNGE - Jacob Verhoef, NRCan is seen here with Dave Hopkin, DRDC collaborator as they inspect one of two Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs) at Vancouver-based International Submarine Engineering (ISE) in 2010. The AUVs went down under the Arctic ice during the spring 2010 survey to collect bathymetry data (water depth) 320 km offshore of Borden Island, Nunavut.
(Photo ISE Ltd.)
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Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUV)

An AUV is an Autonomous Underwater Vehicle designed to survey the Arctic seabed in harsh arctic weather, conditions that can put research expeditions on hold for weeks. AUVs can navigate under thick ice layers where remote controls do not work and can find their way back to a moving home-base. AUVs collect high resolution bathymetric data of the seafloor.

These AUVs are unique in the world, specifically because of their innovative technological capabilities and use in different environments, namely the cold Arctic waters. The two AUVs were built right here in Canada by International Submarine Engineering Ltd. (ISE) located in Port Coquitlam, British Columbia. They were custom designed by federal scientists. The Government of Canada purchased the AUVs for two important uses: 1) To make sure that NRCan can use these to conduct the survey off Borden Island and, 2) So that federal scientists can conduct other scientific research that is important for Canada such as underwater research for the Navy.

Each AUV is about seven meters long and weights around 2,000 kilograms. They are yellow, cylindrical shaped and look much like a very large pencil. The AUV has a propeller on the back and six small wings; four are located on the tail and two can be found at the mid point. These fins enable the AUVs to fly through the water. The AUV is powered by lithium ion batteries that can be recharged underwater. The charge can last for missions as long as 350 – 400 kilometers. That is a lot of power for such small batteries!

The AUVs are designed so they can be taken apart into smaller pieces of about 400 kg for transportation to missions in remote locations.

Project Cornerstone

Project Cornerstone is a federal government initiative to send Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUV) into the Arctic Ocean to collect information (data) on the depth of the water and the shape of the seabed in a remote area north of Borden Island. This research is a team effort with federal scientists and researchers from Natural Resources Canada (NRCan), Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC) and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO).

During March/April 2010, one of the AUVs was launched for several continuous, three-day missions as part of NRCan / DFO’s ongoing surveying and mapping activities. The data collected will be used in support of Canada's submission to define the outer limits of its extended continental shelf under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). The Polar Continental Shelf Program (of NRCan) is also assisting with this work, from its base in Resolute.

The maiden voyage of the AUV at Borden Island was a great success.  Over the length of the mission, the AUV traveled more than 1000 km and dove to depths greater than three kilometres - in combination, these are unique 'world records' .  In addition to this great feat, it successfully completed 450 km of critical bathymetric measurements.

How Do They Find Their Way Home?

The base camp where the mission will start and end is located on an ice floe. Ice floes can drift as much as ten kilometers in one day. Understanding this reality, scientists were concerned and needed to be sure that these AUVs would not go adrift in the vast Arctic Ocean. Getting the AUVs home is number one to mission success. These vehicles will hold invaluable data critical to the survey and are unique research tools that will be used for federal research for many years to come.

Seeing a solution to this problem, the people at Defence Research and Development Canada’s research centre in Halifax, designed a specialized homing system to ensure the vehicles safely find their way back home to the base camp. Each AUV has an assembly of six hydrophones located in the nose cone at the front of the vehicle. When it’s time for the vehicle to return, it has an onboard trip planner that tells it to head back in the direction of the camp. As it gets closer, scientists lower a transponder that is like an underwater loud speaker. The transponder emits a tone as the vehicle approaches. The AUV then hears the call of the tone, “homes in” on it, adjusting its path to come within 100 meters of the camp. Scientists are then able to reasonably retrieve the vehicle.

Technology and Teamwork

Engineering these vehicles and getting them ready for their Arctic mission was an exciting but challenging feat. It consisted of two years of preparation by a team of federal scientists and technicians. It required the innovation of ISE Ltd. and contributions from other companies. Testing, tweaking, and practicing with the vehicles took place during several trials at CFS Alert, Canadian Forces testing grounds on Vancouver Island, and in Vancouver waters near the ISE facility.

In April of 2011, the AUVs were tested in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, in preparation for the 2011 joint survey mission with the US. The AUVs were launched for the first time off a ship instead of an ice floe (which was done on previous missions).

It is a large job that is taking a lot of team work and technological knowledge. Everyone is excited for this hard work to pay off for an important research survey that will help define Canada’s extended continental shelf.

Giving AUVs a Personalized Name

During March and April of 2010, NRCan and DRDC encouraged middle school aged youth in the North to come up with a name for the newly developed AUVs. After the entries were received, Yamoria was chosen. Yamoria is the name of the ancient, great traveler and lawmaker for the Dene people. Congratulations Tannice Baton from Deline, NT for submitting such a creative and appropriate name.

The second AUV was named Qaujisati, "One Who Searches", by Tom and Jopee Kiguktak from Grise Fiord.