Programme 01 · Undersea

BlackVolt AUV

A long-endurance autonomous underwater vehicle. One blended hull that glides on buoyancy, works on station and surfaces to report.

  • Free-swimming AUV
  • Tethered ROV

Form

One blended hull.

The whole planform generates lift. The shape biomimics the manta ray: a single blended-wing body, not a torpedo with wings attached.

  • Blended-wing body
  • Free-flooding fairing

Glide

Glide.

Buoyancy engine: oil out, it rises nose up; oil in, it sinks nose down. That is the sawtooth glide.

  • Propeller folded
  • Buoyancy engine cycling

Work

Work.

On station, the folding stern propeller drives the vehicle when speed is needed. In the glide it folds to cut drag.

  • Propeller driving
  • Holds station

Report

Report.

Reports home by satellite.

  • At the surface
  • Mast up

Recover

Return to recover.

A return-to-recovery phase closes the mission. Independent drop weight for a fail-safe ascent: released, it lets the vehicle rise on its own buoyancy.

  • Heading home
  • Support vessel

Explore

Select a part.

Drag to turn the vehicle. Select a part on the model or in the list.

Blended-wing body

A free-flooding fairing over dry pressure housings.

Inside the hull

Opened up.

Scroll to open the vehicle. Drag to turn it, or open the viewer to look around it in full screen.

Select a part

Select the buoyancy engine to see how it makes the vehicle rise and sink.

Two modes

Free-swimming AUV.
Tethered ROV.

Free-swimming on stored energy, for transit and survey.

Free-swimming · stored energy

Development

Engineering.

Now

  • Full-scale vehicle in design. Hull checked in 44 CFD cases; method validated against the standard submarine-hull benchmark (DARPA SUBOFF, within 4 %).
  • Autonomy software in simulation; energy-optimal route planning implemented in software.
  • First test hardware in procurement.

Next

  • First pool tests.
  • Then the first sea-going prototype, built in about 3 months after funding plus parts lead time.