12-Pound
Underwater Robot Goes on Mission with LSU to Abandoned Oil and Gas
Platforms
VideoRay Lets Crew Do
Research Instead of Handling Heavy, High-Voltage ROV
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Photos available here
Baton Rouge, LA, June 13, 2002 -- “That little thing sure
is sexy,” was the comment made by one woman swimming laps
in the pool at Louisiana State University while Mark Miller flew
his new underwater robot through the waters. The same little ROV
(remotely operated vehicle) that was used to explore inside the
USS Arizona battleship is new equipment on Miller’s boat,
which left Fourchon Port on May 10, 2002, for a 26-day cruise into
the Gulf of Mexico and the mouth of the Mississippi.
The VideoRay micro ROV (remotely operated vehicle) will have an
important role as it sends back live video of the underwater world
to the crew on deck and takes samples in the deep and silty waters.
Miller, a research specialist who works for the Coastal Studies
Institute of LSU, is studying the marine life that lives and thrives
on the legs of oil and gas platforms. His blend of biology and geology
has helped the largest oil and gas companies better understand what
factors influence the environment around platforms.
Miller’s will be studying several abandoned oil and gas platforms
and the largest artificial reef in the world to remove samples and
observe barnacles, coral, and algae. According to Miller, scientists
onboard will be gathering samples that might lead them to cures
for diseases. His second task is a holistic survey of the natural
reef shelf off of Louisiana, where the seabed is 220 feet deep.
Out of reach for divers, the reef is host to a diversity of fish
and coral. Here and at other platforms, Miller will be mapping the
area and associating fish with the structure using sonar on the
VideoRay. He plans to collect 24 hours of deep-water video using
the VideoRay and hopes his research will help answer questions about
what attracts and sustains the marine life on the legs.
What makes the 8-pound robot appealing to Miller is its size –
about the dimensions of a boot box. The ROV that Miller usually
puts to work on his cruises takes six people to operate, weighs
1000 pounds, and takes a crane to move around. “People are
eager to go on trips with me, but the first question is always,
“Is the ROV involved?” It is a lot of work,” says
Miller. “With the VideoRay, people will want to be onboard.
They can play with it. Not everyone on the boat is a diver, and
the VideoRay gives him or her a chance to see what is beneath the
platform – without getting wet. The portability of the VideoRay
allows me to complete my objectives with less manpower and smaller
vessels of opportunity that are less expensive. ”
The VideoRay ROV is remotely controlled from the surface. A tether
up to 500 feet long is attached to a tiny, yellow submersible that
has a video eye. The sub gathers underwater video through its camera
eye, which is viewed on the surface on a TV monitor. Driving the
VideoRay is about as easy as using a video game, so a specially
trained ROV pilot is not needed. The VideoRay Pro II that Miller
purchased includes a manipulator, Desert Star positioning system,
and Imagenex 851 scanning sonar, and a head mounted display. The
unit, including spare parts, personal delivery, and training was
just over $50,000. VideoRays are used throughout the world for surveillance,
security, exploration, scientific research, recreation, and inspections
of all types.
For comments from Mark Miller: call 225-578-9411
or e-mail mmill16@lsu.edu.
For high resolution
photos, click here.
Contact VideoRay LLC • 400 Eagleview Blvd. • Exton,
PA 19341 USA • Phone: (610) 458-3000 • FAX: (610) 458-3010
• www.videoray.com
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