The Eelume is an

autonomous underwater vehicle An autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) is a robot that travels underwater without requiring input from an operator. AUVs constitute part of a larger group of undersea systems known as unmanned underwater vehicles, a classification that includ ...

being developed by Eelume AS, in partnership with

Kongsberg Maritime Kongsberg Maritime (KM) is a Norwegian technology enterprise within the Kongsberg Gruppen (KOG). Kongsberg Maritime deliver systems for positioning, surveying, navigation, and automation to merchant vessels and offshore installations. Their most ...

and

Equinor Equinor ASA (formerly Statoil and StatoilHydro) is a Norwegian state-owned multinational energy company headquartered in Stavanger. It is primarily a petroleum company, operating in 36 countries with additional investments in renewable energy. ...

Function

The Eelume is primarily designed to inspect, maintain and repair subsea infrastructure, primarily for

offshore drilling Offshore drilling is a mechanical process where a wellbore is drilled below the seabed. It is typically carried out in order to explore for and subsequently extract petroleum that lies in rock formations beneath the seabed. Most commonly, the te ...

installations. It may also have military applications, including for mine countermeasures and undersea surveillance. The Eelume is intended to be able to dive 500 meters beneath the surface. The Eelume is designed to be either entirely autonomous, or capable of being controlled remotely by an operator. The Eelume is intended to be deployed permanently underwater, housed at subsea docking stations.

Development

The Eelume was tested at the PREZIOSO Linjebygg Subsea Test Center near

Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; sma, Tråante), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2020, it had a population of 205,332, was the third most populous municipality in Norway, an ...

in November and December 2016. Eelume CEO Arne Kjørsvik has said they anticipate the vehicle being available on the market in late 2019. The company designing Eelume began in 2015 as a spinoff from the

Norwegian University of Science and Technology Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe *Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway * Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including th ...

(NTNU), founded by a team of entrepreneurs including NTNU professor Kristin Ytterstad Pettersen.

External links

Eelume website

Eelume YouTube channel

References

Autonomous underwater vehicles Kongsberg Gruppen {{robotics-stub