VideoRay International Partner Symposium - Lisboa, Portugal
Quick Links: Keynotes | Seminars | Hands-On Workshops | Activities
KEYNOTES
VideoRay State of the Company
Scott Bentley, President of VideoRay, delivers his ever-popular annual presentation: "The State of the Micro-ROV Industry and VideoRay." Starting with a recap of 2006, Scott quickly moves on to describe the industry and technology trends that are sure to have an impact in 2007, particularly VideoRay’s developments for the U.S. Navy (see www.hulsfest.com.) You won't want to miss this one. Subject to time constraints, a question and answer session will follow this presentation.
VideoRay Technology
Since last year’s conference, VideoRay’s Research and Development Team has been working on the next generation of VideoRay. From an electronics and sensor standpoint, these systems will be entirely redesigned using the latest micro-electronics and processors, and provide exciting new capabilities. In addition to explaining the changes you’ll expect, we might have a prototype component or two to demonstrate.
Quick Links: Keynotes | Seminars | Hands-On Workshops | Activities
SEMINARS (60 minutes)
PC Pilot
VideoRay PC Pilot allows operators to free themselves from the confines of the control box and customize the control interface to their preferences. If you have not seen PC Pilot, this session should be added to your personal VIPS schedule. You will learn how to set up PC Pilot and get some hands-on practice time with various joystick devices. Using digital video recording on the PC will be demonstrated as well.
Tracks: Piloting Maintenance
Search and Recovery Techniques for Inland Drowning Victims
Dave Phillips has worked closely with the Volunteer Search and Rescue Squad in St. Louis County, Minnesota. St. Louis County is one of the largest counties in the United States, and encompasses thousands of lakes in addition to Lake Superior shoreline. In addition to duties within their own county, the rescue squad is often called to assist nearby counties in Minnesota and Wisconsin. Learn how VideoRay has been a key tool in search and recovery missions under ice and in warm weather conditions, and important lessons learned from the Rescue Squad’s several body locations with their VideoRay.
Tracks: Piloting
How to Recover from a Bad Day and still be Home in Time for Dinner
Take it from someone who is a certified expert in bad days – it is bound to happen sooner or later. Learn how quickly it can happen and how to recover and get back into operation. See how to solve everything from a broken conductor in your tether, a stuck and knotted tether, a leak, component failures, to the ultimate bad day of losing the ROV - yes, it does happen, and yes, like Steve, you can survive.
Tracks: Piloting
Practical Business Lessons for Starting a Successful VideoRay Operations Business
You have your VideoRay, and you have learned a bit how to operate it. How do you make money with it? Steve Van Meter has completed profitable VideoRay missions for several companies and in many different environments – from inspecting water towers in Spain, to setting natural gas operating platforms in the Black Sea in Turkey, to measuring the size of underground aquifers in Florida. In this session he will share his tips and tricks – and the scars from his mistakes – so you can start your business on the right track.
Tracks: Business
Basic Maintenance, Calibration and Troubleshooting Diagnostic Techniques
Every Micro-ROV user - pilot, technician and supervisor - needs to know what is presented in this seminar. Learn how to care for VideoRays, and how to troubleshoot and fix simple problems.
Tracks: Maintenance
Lateral Inspections at the Panama Canal
To this day, the Panama Canal remains one of the engineering marvels of the world. Experience an insider's behind-the-scenes tour of lock operations and see how VideoRay is being put to use in an environment where every minute contributes to supporting 5% the world's trade.
Tracks: Piloting
Preserving the Legacy of the USS Houston
Strong currents, tangled fishing nets and other debris, and an extremely remote location made this trip, sponsored by survivors of the USS HOUSTON, which was sunk in WWII by the Japanese, very challenging. The plan was to document the structural state of the vessel and provide video footage for the survivors and families of the crew. Learn what actually happened when men and machines hit the water, and the important lessons learned during this talk by one of the three men who ventured on this exciting and dangerous dive during August, 2006.
Tracks: Piloting Maintenance
Port Security – Countering Underwater Threats
The United States Navy is in the process of establishing new technology and techniques to inspect underwater sections of ships for mines planted by enemy divers. The “HULSFEST” benchmark, conducted in February of 2006, was established to bring the best solutions for hull inspection together to demonstrate in challenging conditions. Learn from an experienced Explosive Ordinance Demolition (EOD) diver and member of the VideoRay team how it demonstrated the fastest, most portable, proven, robust, mature, and least costly solution. See www.hulsfest.com for background.
Tracks: Piloting
Challenging Offshore Missions – Technical and Logistic Solutions
VideoRay technology is steadily making progress in the challenging conditions offshore, where traditionally only much larger ROVs have been used. A recent project in Turkey, awarded to Momentum Engineering of Dubai by a large oil and gas company, was an opportunity for VideoRay and our local dealer Emirates Aviation to prove that a pair of VideoRay Deep systems, along with a Tritech Sea Sprite sonar and Desert Star positioning systems could get the same results as larger, more cumbersome, and more expensive systems. In this session you will learn how the VideoRay systems were applied in inspecting the gas production tripod and monitoring the complex process of installing it over the well in the Black Sea. The value of training, backup systems and the VideoRay Advantage! program (VideoRay had a replacement system hand-delivered from the United States to ensure timely delivery and smooth transfer through customs) are all discussed. Different methods of video capture, inflatable boat deployment, battery power for VideoRays, and lessons learned combine to make this a session that anyone using VideoRays in extreme conditions cannot miss.
Tracks: Piloting Business
Custom Built Low Profile VideoRay for Under Platform Work Offshore
VideoRay Dealers Atlantas Marine in Somerset, UK, have repeatedly won VideoRay’s award for highest dealer sales worldwide. One way they have achieved this goal is to do whatever they can to meet their customer’s requirements. A prominent offshore operations company asked for a VideoRay that was no more than 18cm tall – including a scanning sonar – to explore scoured areas underneath concrete pads. Atlantas convinced the R&D department at VideoRay to tackle modifications to the float block and skid, and build custom guards to keep gravel out of the GTO props. Learn how this project went from a customer’s initial query to a successful result in an incredibly short time, and see the modified VideoRay that resulted.
Tracks: Piloting
Inspection of Hydro-Power Plants, Dams and Water Tunnels
For several yearsNorconsult has used VideoRay for inspections of tunnels, gates and dams . VideoRay is an important and effective tool for inspections of objects in hydro-power plants and makes Norconsult more competitive in the market. The size of the ROV is offering accessibility and camera angels that few other inspection platforms can. It has been used to inspect dams, gates and tunnels where neither divers nor industrial ROVs could be used - divers for obvious safety reasons, industrial ROVs for access limitations. Projects in this presentation; Under water construction work at Vrangfoss HPP in Norway has been monitored by VideoRay; A lost draft tube gate at Mtera HPP in Tanzania has been found; Monitor lowering of stop logs in front of a jammed, partially open gate where the use of divers would be unthinkable; Inspection of a leaking low level outlet gate in heavy turbulence. Summary of 6 years of operating experience.
Tracks: Piloting Business
Ocean as Aquarium: VideoRay Used As an Aquarium Display
Aquariums are always looking for novel ways of displaying and educating the public about aquatic animals and plants. They also explore ways of using underutilized resources at their institutions and turning them into exhibits. At the Marine Resources Aquarium, there is a dock that is located near the aquarium but was never used by the public. The Aquarium came upon the idea of using a Micro-ROV to educate the public about how ROVs are used in science, as well as explore the rich and vibrant aquatic life under the dock. In this presentation, Ed Seidel we will share the experiences and findings, and discuss how they plan to expand and improve the exhibit in the future.
Tracks: Business
Quick Links: Keynotes | Seminars | Hands-On Workshops | Activities
HANDS-ON WORKSHOPS
Advanced Maintenance
In this workshop, participants will disassemble and reassemble a VideoRay for a very detailed look at the mechanical and electronic workings of the system. Learn about the tools needed, components functions, and the best practices for conducting a routine service or repair.
Tracks: Maintenance
Strategies and Tactics for Conducting a Wide Area Search
Limited details, conflicting reports and environmental variables make wide area searches challenging. Put your skills to the test in this mock search and recovery exercise. See if you can piece together the clues, deduce the sequence events and confirm the results of the “incident that happened at VIPS.”
Tracks: Piloting
Advanced Diagnostics and Troubleshooting
No video? Control panel lock-up? Finding a cure means finding the cause. This session provides a detailed look at factory specifications and test procedures to diagnose and solve typical problems. Strategies and tactics for isolating the problem quickly and dealing with difficult to diagnose problems are also discussed.
Tracks: Maintenance
Underwater Investigation
American TV has popularized the role of the forensic scientist in solving accident and criminal investigations. Learn what it really takes to conduct a thorough and conclusive underwater investigation from two experts with years of experience in law enforcement. While the strategies remain relatively unchanged, the tactics have been radically changed since the introduction of ROVs.
Tracks: Piloting
Moving towards Autonomy
Motivated to increase efficiency in underwater biological sampling applications, researchers from the Lab for Autonomous and Intelligent Robotics at the University of Waterloo are investigating the use of equipping Micro-ROVs with autonomous capabilities. After acquiring a VideoRay Pro III in June of 2005, the lab began several projects that aim to use the Pro III for deploying autonomous vehicle formations, integration within a cabled observatory, and autonomous fish tracking. In this talk, progress of this work will be described including dynamics modeling, Inertial Measurement Unit integration, vision-processing, and finally removing the tether. Although still in its infancy, this project promises to add new capabilities to existing VideoRay ROVs, thereby allowing future sampling tasks to be accomplished without an operator.
Tracks: Piloting
Diving Archeological Diversity
In this presentation, Chris explains how VideoRay explored both deep water wreck sites and inland fortress cisterns.
Tracks: Piloting
New User Primer
The perfect starting place for the new user, this hands-on presentation explains each component and instructs you on how to set up and operate your VideoRay. Gain skills and confidence quickly when you learn from an experienced pilot and instructor.
Tracks: Piloting
Developing Advanced Piloting Skills
Reduced visibility, high currents, enclosed spaces… Even experienced ROV pilots dread these conditions.
Tracks: Piloting
A Picture Is Worth... the Entire Mission!
One of the most dynamic technologies Micro-ROV operators need to keep up with in the world of underwater searches and inspections has nothing to do with water. Often what was observed needs to be presented to someone else. From the simple VCR to the most sophisticated digital video editing, there are so many options it is hard to keep current. Each method has its strengths and weaknesses: cost, resolution, portability, usability, media cost, acceptance by clients, system requirements, interface, and edit-ability to name a few. During this working session, various devices for displaying and/or capturing video and still images with a VideoRay will be demonstrated and the strengths and weaknesses of each will be explored.
Tracks: Business
Imaging Sonar - BlueView
Tracks: Piloting
Scanning Sonar, Laser Scalar - Tritech
Tracks: Piloting
Positioning System - Desert Star
Tracks: Piloting
Quick Links: Keynotes | Seminars | Hands-On Workshops | Activities
Activities
GTO Test Drive
"Faster than a speeding bullet..." Okay, that might be an exaggeration, but we are sure that when you see the VideoRay GTO (Greater Thrust Option) you will be suitable impressed. The GTO more than doubles the thrust of a standard VideoRay Pro III and enables it to leap out of the water. Now that is an impressive sight you just have to see. Buckle Up – you are going to love this ride... This session also includes a preview of classified and unreleased test results that are truly unbelievable.
Gadgets and Gizmos
Bring your best home-made VideoRay accessory and show it off. On display will be the "Jaws" manipulator, various protective cages, tether management tools, the latest product upgrades now shipping with new VideoRays, and more. Everyone who brings in their favorite accessory for display will receive a VideoRay Underwater Robotic Specialist T-Shirt, and the winner of the coolest accessory - as determined by popular vote - will take home a special prize.
The Internet Is My Tether
Introduced to the public at VIPS 2004, controlling VideoRays over the Internet or wireless connections offers unique benefits. Get a first-hand experience the potential of long distance operations and simultaneous viewing in geographically disperse locations.
Exhibition
VideoRay and conference sponsors will be exhibiting and demonstrating some of their latest technology. You will want to stop by and see what is available from VideoRay, Desert Star, BlueView Technologies and Tritech.
Quick Links: Keynotes | Seminars | Hands-On Workshops | Activities
|
