A D VA N C E D S Y S T E M T E C H N O L O G Y A S T

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REMOTELY OPERATED UNDER-WATER VEHICLE: C-WATCH

Overview

C-Watch is a highly maneuverable remo-

tely operated vehicle (ROV). In contrast to

common ROVs the C-Watch vehicle is

equipped with an internal energy storage

that allows to use lightweight fiber optic

cables between the robot and its control

station.

The flexible design of the vehicle and

different interfacing options enables the

C-Watch owner to fulfill numerous tasks

with this ROV. A number of sensor options

are available for underwater navigation or

environmental sensing.

A unique feature of C-Watch is the

ability to convert it into a true autonomous

underwater vehicle (AUV) - without the

need of a cable connection - provided

that the required navigation sensors are

integrated.

Platform

C-Watch uses five or six propulsion units

for movement and attitude control. These

units use the robust CAN bus for commu-

nication with the control computer inside

the central pressure hull. This computer

also controls all sensors of the vehicle and

observes the battery state. All collected

information is presented to the vehicle

operator on different screens of the control

station (usually a laptop or stationary

computer).

A forward looking optical camera with

high power LED lighting is used by default

for navigation and visual inspection. The

optional forward looking sonar assists the

operator in long range navigation. The

main battery can be easily replaced in

the field to extend the deployment time

(additional battery modules are optional).

1 C-Watch is a highly

maneuverable underwater vehicle

Advanced System Technology AST

Am Vogelherd 50

98693 Ilmenau

Surface Water & Maritime Systems:

Dr Torsten Pftzenreuter

Phone +49 3677 461-143

Fax +49 3677 461-100

torsten.pfuetzenreuter@iosb-ast.fraunhofer.de

www.iosb-ast.fraunhofer.de

Sensor interfaces

The C-Watch vehicle can easily be

tailored for individual monitoring or

intervention tasks. It is equipped with open

sensor interfaces allowing the integration

of different sensor or actuator modules.

Customers can select from a range of

field-tested sensors or order the installation

of own sensors.

The sensor data are integrated into the user

interface for vehicle control. New protocol

specifications can be adopted with user

defined scripts.

The following standard interfaces are

available:

RS-232 RS-485 (multi-sensor capable) CAN (multi-sensor capable) USB

For other interfaces please contact

Fraunhofer AST.

Optionally, the following sensors are

available for integration:

DVL (Doppler velocity log, speed measurement)

Altimeter (height above ground measurement)

Forward looking sonar (obstacle avoidance and object identification)

Downward looking camera with lightning

Technical characteristics

Main Battery: 800 Wh (7 LiPo cells) Weight: 45 kg Dimensions: 850x550x450mm (LxWxH) Diving depth: up to 100 meters Deployment time: up to 4 hours Fiber optic cable: 500 1200 meters

Standard sensor equipment

Pressure sensor (depth and temperature measurement)

AHRS sensor (vehicle attitude) GPS sensor (vehicle position at surface) Forward looking camera with lighting

2 Vehicle control and

monitoring system

3 Construction of the C-Watch

vehicle (with optional equipment)

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