Kraken to Supply AquaPix® MINSAS for Riptide’s Compact Unmanned Underwater Vehicles
ST. JOHN’S, NEWFOUNDLAND – (Marketwired – 29 March 2017) – Kraken Sonar Inc. (Kraken) (TSX-V: PNG) announced today that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Kraken Sonar Systems Inc. has teamed with Boston-based Riptide Autonomous Solutions (Riptide) to supply AquaPix® MINSAS for integration onboard Riptide’s new 2-Man Portable UUV platform. Riptide has developed a highly flexible, open source family of autonomous undersea vehicles that provide users a state-of-the-art, low cost development solution ideally suited for developers of autonomy and behaviors, power systems, subsea sensors and new payloads. The vehicles feature open hardware and software interfaces to provide users a reliable and robust platform to advance technology development. The vehicle designs leverage their initial product offering, the Micro-UUV, which is optimized for high efficiency with the best hydrodynamic signature in its class combined with high efficiency low power processing. Riptide’s Family of UUVs AquaPix® MINSAS is based upon Kraken’s core Synthetic Aperture Sonar technology. …
Kraken Announces SeaVision™ 3D Laser System
World’s First Full Colour 3D Underwater Laser Imaging System Provides Millimetre Accuracy in Real Time ST. JOHN’S, NF and BREMEN, GERMANY–(Marketwired – March 28, 2017) – Kraken Sonar Inc. (Kraken) (TSX VENTURE: PNG) announced today that its subsidiary, Kraken Robotik GmbH, will introduce its new SeaVision™ system at the upcoming Ocean Business conference to be held in Southampton, UK from 04 – 06 April 2017. SeaVision™ is the world’s first RGB underwater laser imaging system that offers the resolution, range and scan rate to deliver dense full colour 3D point cloud images of subsea infrastructure with millimetre accuracy in real time. The initial system is designed for deployment on underwater robotic platforms such as Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs) and Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs). A hand-held diver system is planned for release later this year. In recent years, 3D imaging sensors have increased in popularity in fields such as human-machine interaction, augmented reality, cartography…
Kraken Announces CDN$2,000,000 Private Placement
ST. JOHN’S, NL–(Marketwired – March 27, 2017) – Kraken Sonar Inc. (TSX VENTURE: PNG) (“Kraken” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce that it is undertaking a non-brokered private placement offering for aggregate gross proceeds of up to CDN$2 million (the “Offering”). Pursuant to the Offering, the Company may issue up to an aggregate of up to 11,111,112 units (the “Units”) at a price of CDN$0.18 per Unit. Each Unit will consist of one common share of the Company (each, a “Share”) and one-half of one common share purchase warrant (each full warrant, a “Warrant”). Each Warrant shall entitle the holder thereof to acquire one Share at a price of CDN$0.30 for a period of two years from closing of the Offering. All securities issued under the Offering will be subject to a four month hold period from the closing date under applicable Canadian securities laws, in addition to such other restrictions…
Using Laser Scanning for Next Generation Subsea Metrology
Subsea technology companies demonstrated a new underwater surveying technique that could significantly shorten the time needed to map underwater structures and offshore sites. The event was organized by DOF Subsea to showcase the capabilities of dynamic mobile mapping. The new technique uses a 3D laser scanner fitted to an ROV to create highly detailed, point cloud images of subsea assets and environments. By combining the 3D laser data with precise underwater acoustic and inertial navigation information, it is now possible to generate centimeter resolution engineering models from which accurate measurements can be instantaneously and repeatably captured. In conventional marine construction support terminology, metrology is the work done by surveyors and ROV to acquire various subsea measurements, typically between flanges on separate pieces of subsea infrastructure. These measurements allow precise fabrication of subsea jumpers and spool-pieces. Traditionally the vessel time to acquire the measurement data can take between six and eight…
Kraken Receives Financial Contribution from The Government of Canada
Funding Will Support Development of Kraken’s Underwater Robotics Technology Program ST. JOHN’S, NL–(Marketwired – March 21, 2017) – Kraken Sonar Inc. (Kraken) (TSX VENTURE: PNG) announced today that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Kraken Sonar Systems Inc., will receive a non-refundable financial contribution of up to $1,470,000 from the National Research Council of Canada Industrial Research Assistance Program (NRC-IRAP). In addition to technical and business advisory services provided by NRC-IRAP, the funding is being used to support the development of Kraken’s underwater robotics program, which involves development of a technology demonstration platform. The first phase of the program will utilize the Fraunhofer Institute’s DEDAVE Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) as the base platform. The AUV will be enhanced with hydrodynamic, control system and payload upgrades. DEDAVE AUV equipped with Kraken’s AquaPix® MINSAS-60 Synthetic Aperture Sonar Karl Kenny, Kraken’s President and CEO, said, “We sincerely appreciate the continued support and assistance from the National…
Aquabotix to List on Australian Stock Exchange
The listing of US-based Aquabotix makes it one of the few pure-play publicly-listed underwater drone companies. The company makes portable underwater vehicles, which it says are used by commercial, educational, industrial, government, military and recreational applications and by anyone looking to explore under water. According to company filings, since 2011, Aquabotix has sold 840 units in over 45 countries and has customers such as Australia’s Broadspectrum, various US defense forces and government departments, BP, Shell and ConEdison. http://www.afr.com/technology/usbased-underwater-drone-startup-aquabotix-to-list-on-asx-20170314-guya55
Kraken and Fraunhofer Sign Technology Licensing Agreement for Underwater Robotics
Kraken’s Technology Portfolio Valued at Over C$20M ST. JOHN’S, NEWFOUNDLAND, MARCH 15, 2017 /Marketwired/ – Kraken Sonar Inc. (TSX-V: PNG) announced today that in a strategic move to further strengthen its IP portfolio, it has signed an exclusive licensing agreement for underwater robotics technology with Germany’s Fraunhofer Institute for Optronics, System Technologies and Image Exploitation (IOSB). Fraunhofer is the largest organization for applied research in Europe with 69 institutes, over 24,500 employees and a €2.1 billion annual budget. Since 2012, Fraunhofer has been developing intellectual property and technology related to underwater robotics. Over C$6 million has been invested in Fraunhofer’s underwater sensor robotics programs, culminating in the development of the DEDAVE Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV). DEDAVE AUV in Fraunhofer’s test tank in Ilmenau, Germany. “Our team is very impressed with many features of the DEDAVE’s unique design, including the open-frame architecture, tool-free access to payload sections and faster turnaround with pressure…
Kraken Hires Ex Rolls Royce Engineers in Nova Scotia
Since January 2016, Bill Spencer has been running the Dartmouth branch of Kraken Sonar, the Newfoundland-based marine tech firm that moved into Nova Scotia at the same time. Since starting there, Spencer has brought on board four of his former Rolls-Royce colleagues — mechanical engineers Henry Vietinghoff and Ryan Ferguson, electrical engineer James Mallett and designer Dan Kehoe. Spencer told the Chronicle Herald they’re designing an autonomous launch and recovery system for Kraken’s Newfoundland designed and built Katfish, a torpedo-like device that captures high resolution images of the seabed in real time. http://thechronicleherald.ca/nowns/curiosity/1449998-nowns-kraken-sonar-gobbling-up-ex-rolls-royce-engineers
Kraken’s KATFISH Completes Successful Phase One Sea Trials
ST. JOHN’S, NL –(Marketwired – March 08, 2017) – Kraken Sonar Inc. (TSX VENTURE: PNG) is pleased to announce that it has successfully completed phase one sea trials of its KATFISH™ towed Synthetic Aperture Sonar system. Karl Kenny, Kraken’s President and CEO said, “These are exciting times in the underwater robotics industry. Customers are starting to fully understand the cost and risk mitigation benefits of unmanned systems. Both military and commercial markets are showing encouraging growth as they are now incorporating unmanned vehicles and intelligent sensors in their procurement plans and budgets. In fact, industry analysts Market Info Group estimates that the global unmanned maritime systems market will reach $2 billion by 2020.” The goals of the initial sea trials were to validate KATFISH towing performance at various speeds and sea states; to operate and validate the system’s hydrodynamic flight sensors; and to operate onboard sonars including the AquaPix® MINSAS 180 Synthetic Aperture…
