Originally Posted by
bimmerdriver
The reason the Ocean Shield and the Bluefin are being used is because they are available and they are suitable. The Ocean Shield is of a typical design that's used in the offshore oil and gas industry [...] Based on what I've read about the Ocean Shield, it doesn't have ROVs. The "grapple" will not be used to directly lift debris off the bottom. When (if) they find some debris, they will dive an ROV to take a closer look. If they decide to lift some debris, an ROV will be used to fasten some sort of lifting apparatus to the debris and attach it to the hook on the crane on the surface vessel. There are many vessels similar to the Ocean Shield that already have ROVs. So the Ocean Shield is the right type of vessel, but would need ROVs if it's to be used for recovering debris.
Disclaimer: I work for a company that makes equipment and systems used in the offshore oil and gas industry. I've been on a vessel similar to the Ocean Shield.
OK. You know more about ROVs than I do, but I was under the impression that Ocean Shield shipped out with a TPL, an AUV and a little ROV (maybe not a Remus 6000, but still...) They also have the Echo standing by with a lot of other electronics.
This is a three-week 'old' link now:
http://www.news.com.au/national/weat...-1226864685171
[Quote] The US Navy will deliver a Towed Pinger Locator for the Ocean Shield in the search for the black box.
They will also provide a CURV-21 Autonomous Underwater Vehicle.[unquote]
Here are the specs n the CURV-21 from
http://www.supsalv.org/00c2_curv21Ro...2&pageId=2.5.3 :
(Check out the Lift Capacity)
CURV 21
Curv CURV-21 is a 6,400-pound Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) that is designed to meet the US Navy's deep ocean salvage requirements down to a maximum depth of 20,000 feet of seawater. This vehicle is loaded with a host of new technologies and was built as a direct replacement for CURV-III but with a smaller overall system footprint.
ORION and CURV-21 can be combined into a single integrated search & recovery system capable of being deployed on a USNS T-ATF. The system is based on a .680 fiber-optic umbilical cable and a shared handling system that can switch at sea between side-scan sonar and ROV operations. The system is self-contained and fly-away transportable for world wide response on vessels of opportunity.
The ROV can be controlled in all six degrees of motion with auto-control functions for depth, altitude, and heading. An integrated DVL allows 1 and 2 meter incremental movements as well as cruise control for extended axial movements. The vehicle is equipped with CTFM sonar for target location and pinger detection. The ROV uses two seven function rate manipulators. It has a high-resolution digital still camera, black and white, and color television cameras. The system includes a load bearing, pressure compensated, Electro-Optical Umbilical Swivel.
The fiber optic multi-plex system can combine up to eight channels of video, sonar, USBL, RS-232/422/485 data communications, and navigation data on a single fiber. 2 spare fibers are available subsea for additional sensors. A digital communications network with a data capacity of 400 MHz controls the vehicle and has significant capacity for future expansion. The system is designed to interface easily with additional sensors or tool packages using standard data formats.
For special operations, the ROV can accommodate customized tool packages. These packages can include, but are not limited to specialized salvage tools, instrument packages, or other mission-oriented equipment.
GENERAL SPECIFICATIONS
VEHICLE
Length - 8 ft
Width - 5 ft 0 in
Height - 7 ft 0 in
Weight - 6,400 lbs
PERFORMANCE
Depth - 20,000 ft of seawater
Speed - 2.5 knots
Power - 45 Hp
Auto Controls - Depth, altitude, heading, cruise, auto translate
Lift Capacity - 4,000 lbs via ROV frame & umbilical (releasable)
Payload - 240 lbs.
Manipulators & Tool Packages
Two 7-function Schilling ORION Manipulators rated at 150lbs @ 5ft.
Custom tool packages: Guillotine cutter, rotary grinders & tools, and T-handle shackles w/ heavy rigging.
INSTRUMENTATION
Navigation
1 x Electronic Gyrocompass
1 x Attitude and Heading Reference Unit
1200 kHz Doppler Velocity Log
1200khz Doppler Velocity Log
Altimeter, 200Khz
Ultra Short Baseline Tracking ( 17Khz)
Emergency Locators - Acoustic beacon -37.5 kHz
Strobe flasher - high intensity Xenon (100-hr life)
Radio Direction Finder
Sonar
CTFM with 2000 ft. maximum range with pinger locator
(27/37/45 khz)
Cameras
1 x 460 Kongsberg 1364 color video on pan and tilt
1 x 400 Black and white Fixed pilot camera
1 x 3.3 Meg Pixel Digital Still with strobe
Lights
4 x 250 Watt Halogen fixed
2 x 400 watt HMI
[Update]
I don't know if this is true, but i saw a post by 'underfire' on prune that said that Ocean Shield is packing a Remus 6000:
http://www.pprune.org/rumours-news/5...-lost-504.html
There is also a lot of mixing of terminology so an AUV can be a ROV. I don't really know what the boundary of the definition is. I couldn't find a verification of which ROV is on OS. Anyone know for sure?