59 succeeded by the Horizon Europe programme]. They explained the nature of the SeaClear project, and the kind of autonomous aquatic clean-up operations they were aiming for, and we quickly agreed to take part.” It so happened that development of the SeaCAT was nearly complete at the time, so Subsea Tech saw Delft’s proposed mission as the ideal opportunity to test its 6.8 m-long, 1 t diesel-electric autonomous catamaran in this use case. The SeaCAT had its first tests in Dubrovnik in November 2021, working as the mothership for a handful of other uncrewed vehicles (not all from Subsea Tech) with their own roles in the operation, and supported by the appropriate AI, planning and infrastructure; further tests followed in Marseille and Hamburg. Most recently, in June this year, the first public demonstration of autonomous seabed litter cleaning took place in Hamburg, and further tests are to follow. SeaCAT and SeaClear The SeaCAT has two rigid hulls, with inflatable pontoons to increase stability in heavy seas, although it can sail with them deflated in low sea states. This gives it dimensions of 6.83 x 3.1 x 2.15 m when inflated and 5.78 x 2.15 x 2.15 m when deflated. The solid, 5.78 x 2.15 m frame on top of the inflatables provides enough room for the USV’s key subsystems and three additional uncrewed systems. “As standard, the USV has one ROV on board, Subsea’s Tortuga, which was designed for users who needed the kind of autonomous deployment of an inspection-class ROV from the stern of the vessel. It is responsible for picking up the litter,” Chardard explains. “For SeaClear though, we needed to modify the vessel to also have an ROV deployable from the bow, and that does the underwater mapping; the SeaCAT is large enough to allow that. Then, on top of the launching system for the ROV at the bow, we have built a platform for the launching and landing of a UAV.” At the stern is an electromechanical winch for launching, powering, controlling and recovering the Tortuga, a 37.5 kg system with four horizontal SeaCAT and the SeaClear project | In operation Ready for collection Uncrewed Systems Technology | October/November 2023 risk to divers, but to date there has been little development of practical systems. Recently however, the EU-funded SeaClear project has been making the case for using autonomous systems in clean-up efforts. At its heart is the SeaCAT USV from Subsea Tech, and the project’s key aim is to show how AI and uncrewed vehicles can automate and simplify these efforts. As Subsea Tech’s CEO Yves Chardard recounts, “In 2019, the University of Delft in the Netherlands contacted us and explained that they wanted to set up a proposal for funding from the European Commission via its Horizon 2020 research and innovation funding programme [since 2020, this has been The Tortuga ROV is stowed at the back of the SeaCAT, where the USV lowers or raises it from the water by a winch
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