L3 Technologies announced that its Iver4 Unmanned Underwater Vehicle (UUV) completed a mission lasting more than 14 hours in San Diego Bay, California, US.
This long-duration mission was successfully completed with a standard nickel-metal hydride (NiMH) battery configuration – demonstrating the battery’s power endurance, system efficiency and predictability of the Iver4 platform. During the transit route of over 35 nautical miles, the Iver4 UUV collected high-quality side scan sonar and bathymetry data to include more than 10 nautical miles of the dedicated survey. At mission completion, there was still additional battery power remaining onboard the Iver4.
Iver4 is a two-man-portable UUV that features full-size capability. With its standard NiMH battery configuration, the vehicle can operate upwards of 20 hours dependent on payload and employment.
Alternate battery chemistries are available as enhancement options, including lithium ion, which supports run times greater than 40 hours. Many UUV missions benefit from extended endurance operations, including mine countermeasures, anti-submarine warfare, extended survey, and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance.
“This successful mission demonstrates the Iver4’s extended endurance that our naval customers require to complete long ingress and egress missions,” said Daryl Slocum, L3 Fall River’s General Manager.
“The Iver4 is pushing the boundaries of what man-portable UUVs can accomplish. Its best-in-class endurance, combined with the highest quality data collection, precise navigation and swappable payloads, makes the Iver4 an ideal choice for a variety of military and commercial applications.”