Posted on May 14, 2025
French technological solutions company Elwave announced that their Octopulse underwater electromagnetic sensor mounted on Royal IHC’s crawler is performing sea trials during the SeaSEC25 Challenge.
The company announced the development on LinkedIn that the Octopulse underwater electromagnetic sensor is now mounted on a crawler to detect seabed and buried threats near subsea cables and pipelines during the SeaSEC25 (Seabed Security Experimentation Center) Challenge.
At the core of the collaboration between ROYAL IHC and Elwave is a high-end seabed crawler equipped with Elwave’s Octopulse sensor, powered by the biomimicry-based CEDAR® (Controlled Electric Detection and Ranging) technology. This breakthrough system enhances mine detection and classification, even in challenging conditions such as high acoustic noise, electromagnetic interference, or poor visibility. Royal IHC provides their expertise in subsea crawler technology, knowledge gained in underwater mining. Elwave, a deep-tech company based in Nantes, France, specialises in advanced sensing technology. Its CEDAR® system, inspired by electric-sensing fish, enables real-time detection of mines, UXO, cables, and seabed structures.
According to Royal IHC, the seabed crawler is an efficient tool for protecting underwater infrastructures performing intervention and inspection work. The concept foundation for this seabed crawler is based on the field proven undercarriage of the Hi-Traq®, a subsea vehicle specifically designed for the installation and burial of offshore cables.
It consists of a four-track system that maximizes tractive effort. Thanks to the Royal IHC patented independently steerable tracks with self-leveling system, along with anti-slip 4 track drive technology, its manoeuvrability and terrain climbing capabilities are unmatched.
To perform interventions near underwater cables or pipelines, the subsea crawler can be outfitted with large assortment of intervention tools ranging from Royal IHC design subsea handling systems through to industry standard tooling such as outfitted with a pair of Schilling Titan 4 Manipulators. Tools would be selected to carry out the following activities:
- seabed object recovery/placement
- remote maintenance
- inspection of explosive devices
- removal of explosives for safe detonation elsewhere
Modular design for flexible operations
The vehicle has also been designed to allow for swap out of the central chassis to enable various means of powering and controlling the vehicle. Typical options would be as follows:
- Surface Fed Amphibious Vehicle – This configuration allows for Hydraulic and electrical power to be sent down an umbilical to the vehicle. The vehicle can then be supported by a barge or similar to carry out shallow water works or onshore operations
- Surface Fed Deep Water/Long Distance Vehicle – This vehicle comes with an onboard HPU and a 4km long umbilical. Vehicle can then be operated from onshore or off-shore with a support vessel
- Battery Powered Vehicle – The vehicle can be outfitted with a battery system to enable wireless remote operation
Check out our video coverage from NEDS 2023 below:
