Trident HD underwater consumer drone
It was only a matter of time before the underwater frontier was opened up for everyone to explore, seeing as the skies are already conquered by drones. Kickstarter startup, OpenROV launches Trident, an all-new, low-cost underwater consumer drone. Part of an ongoing mission to democratise ocean exploration, this model is simple enough to “plug in and go,” and capable enough to use for scientific research and serious exploration.
OpenROV has already established a rich community of makers, explorers, and ocean enthusiasts with its popular OpenROV kits. The company began in 2012 when co-founders Eric Stackpole and David Lang came up with the design for an expedition to find gold lost in an underwater cave. Noticing there weren’t any affordable underwater ROVs on the market, they realised that they were tapping into a burgeoning trend that enabled citizen explorers and scientists. The Trident underwater drone weighs less than 3kg, and is small enough to fit in a backpack or underneath an airplane seat. It can dive to 100m depth. It’s hydrodynamic shape allows it to move both quickly and precisely. Trident sends live video back to the surface by way of a thin, neutrally buoyant tether, and is controlled by a laptop, smartphone or tablet at the surface. Unlike an aerial drone, the Trident needs to be connected to a tether at all times. Straight out of the box, the Trident comes with a 25m (82ft) tether. If you want to go even deeper, you can get an extra-long tether for dives up to 100m (328ft). The other amazing thing is the 3 hour battery life! The feature that will matter for filmmakers, explorers and videographers is the drone’s front-facing HD camera. Coupled with the onboard headlights, you will be able to capture fantastic footage even in murky water. Trident drone video:
Trident’s unique shape and design make it ideal for projects such as 3D mapping that require it to move along transects - long straight lines for surveying large areas. The HD video stream allows the pilot to view the underwater world in a way that has never before been possible, and Trident’s ease of operation makes flying the robot fun and exciting for anyone - regardless of technical skill. The OpenROV team has spent the past three years designing, testing, and developing Trident with the end user in mind. Expected delivery is November 2016.At his TEDx talk earlier this year, co-founder Eric Stackpole remarked, “I like to picture a world where hundreds of thousands of people have access to these kinds of tools for exploration. What happens when you put this kind of ability to explore the world in the hands of everybody?”
Orders can be placed on Kickstarter today with a pre-order price of USD1,199 https://shop.trycelery.com/page/5637ca44df92ea03009633b3
