Leap-Ahead Power and Tethering (LAPT) Program for Remote Offshore Inspections

在海上能源行业，遥控潜水器(ROV)长期以来一直被用于海底检查和维护。在海上下水ROV是具有挑战性的-管理船舶运动、天气动态和这些大型维护级机器人的重大重量需要配备复杂起重设备的大型船舶。不幸的是，这些大型船舶的相关成本和碳足迹限制了水下机器人的价值和环境效益。尽管较小的无人水面舰艇(USV)已经成为一种潜在的解决方案，但在完全平静的季节部署ROV是一个技术挑战。HonuWorx寻求用水下部署平台取代船员发射舰艇，并将船员角色转移到岸上。LOGGERHEAD是一种基于大型AUV的运输和部署ROV的方法，通过用无人潜母舰取代大型载人水面舰艇，提供了一种降低运营成本和排放的阶梯变化。LAPT项目将开发和制作两个关键的“LOGERHEAD”子系统的原型。该项目通过结合经过验证的海底技术来降低风险，并将资源集中在部署先进的能源储存和先进的海洋通信上，以创建一个独特的、具有破坏性的海底工作系统。Loggerhead方法优于配备人员和无人值守的水面船只部署，因为(1)它是一个资本密集度较低的系统，(2)它提供了操作成本和排放的阶段性变化，(3)它通过消除飞溅区部署风险支持全天候水下操作，(4)系统在航行期间保持在水下，以避免监管问题Loggerhead承诺将近海检查的成本降低高达50%，并消除排放。该项目是一个机会，可以扩大英国在交通运输领域的领导地位，支持净零过渡和机器人技术。

Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs) have long been utilised for subsea inspection and maintenance in the offshore energy industry. Launching ROVs at sea is challenging - managing vessel motion, weather dynamics and the significant weight of these large maintenance class robots requires large vessels with complex lifting equipment.The associated cost and carbon footprint of these large vessels unfortunately limits the value and environmental benefits of subsea robotics. Although smaller Uncrewed Surface Vessels (USVs) have emerged as a potential solution, deploying ROVs from them is a technical challenge in anything but completely calm seas.HonuWorx seeks to replace crew-based launch vessels with subsea deployment platforms and move the crew roles onshore. Loggerhead is a large-AUV based approach for transporting and deploying ROVs that offers a step-change reduction in operating costs and emissions by replacing large crewed surface vessels with an uncrewed submersible mothership.The LAPT project shall develop and prototype two key sub-systems of "Loggerhead". The project mitigates risk by combining proven subsea technologies and focuses resources on deploying advances in energy storage and advanced marine communications to create a unique and disruptive system for subsea work. The Loggerhead approach is superior to crewed and uncrewed surface vessel deployment because(1) it is a less capital intensive system,(2) offers a step change reduction in operations costs and emissions(3) it supports all-weather subsea operations by eliminating splash-zone deployment risks, and(4) the system stays subsea during navigation to avoid regulatory issuesLoggerhead promises to reduce costs of offshore inspections by up to 50% and eliminate emissions. The project is an opportunity to extend the UK's leadership in the transportation sector, support the net-zero transition and in robotic technologies.