For over 15 years the Wayne County Sheriff’s Scuba Dive team has used an early underwater drone for assisting in water rescues, searches and recoveries, but time and wear have made the old unit obsolete.
It was decided that the Sheriff’s Office needed the latest in technology, not only for the numerous water searches, but to ensure diver safety.
After reviewing numerous underwater drones, the Sheriff’s Office has selected the Deep Trekker ‘Pivot’ ROV (Remote Operation Vehicle), a tethered, battery-operated unit that can dive up to 1000 feet below the surface. Currently, trained divers are limited to only minutes at a low depth of 120 feet.
The 37.5 pound vehicle is 14.2 inches wide, by 22.7 inches long and 12.2 inches high, that can run for up to five hours on a charge. The unit is fast charging and comes with extra batteries for prolonged searches.
Wayne County’s purchase at $65,000 will be the premier unit throughout the UpState New York region.
Divers often face low, or no visibility in mud, silt, weed and current conditions that hamper searches. While a diver can view in a six foot range, the Pivot allows the controller, with its sonar and radar capabilities to search 30 to 40 feet in each direction.
The unit is capable, with its claw- like tool to clamp on to a body, or item and with the tether, pulling it to the surface. It is equipped with a jpg 8mp camera and enhanced 4K camera and will easily operate in bone chilling ice water of 14ºF-122ºF.
Thruster-controlled, it is fully reversible and composed of anodized machined aluminum, carbon fiber, stainless steel, & buoyancy foam. It is engineered for harsh conditions and is also equipped with high efficiency LED, fully dimmable, 1000 Lumens lights tracking with the camera.
According to Wayne County Scuba Dive Team leader Detective Sergeant Brian Pitt, the current 8-man dive crew will receive the unit in the Spring, and it comes with days of complete training by the company.
A full video of the Pivot in action can be viewed at DeepTrekker.com
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