Kraken Robotics AquaPix Sonar Completes Sea Trials

Kraken Robotics Inc., a Canadian company, has successfully concluded sea trials for its AquaPix system. The company's developed AquaPix interferometric synthetic aperture sonar (InSAS) is designed for integration onto a wide range of autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs).

During trials conducted in collaboration with the U.S. Naval Undersea Warfare Center (NUWC), the AquaPix system was integrated onto a REMUS600 class AUV. Following a brief integration period, the system successfully generated 3cm resolution imagery and 25cm resolution co-registered bathymetry without requiring vehicle re-tuning.

The AquaPix system offers benefits such as higher resolution and improved area coverage rates compared to traditional sonar technologies. Its design leverages advanced signal processing in place of traditional sonar hardware, enabling higher resolution while reducing hardware costs.

Historically, SAS technology has been expensive and complex, primarily limiting its use to military applications. Kraken's AquaPix aims to make SAS technology more accessible to commercial operators. The company previously demonstrated similar technology on Canada's Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC) Arctic Explorer AUV, achieving 3cm resolution imagery.

Kraken Robotics anticipates that as SAS technology becomes more affordable and widespread, it will serve as a significant supplement, and in some cases a replacement, for existing seabed mapping technologies.