HYBIS

Hydraulic Benthic Interactive Sampler (HyBIS) is a modular, versatile, robotic underwater vehicle (RUV) capable of reaching depths of 6000 metres, developed and operated by the NOC. Controlled via fibre optic cable connected to the ship, HyBIS is equipped with sampling grab, cameras and equipment used to record conditions in the deep sea.

The main module consists of the steering unit represented by two propellers as well as the energy supply, the cameras, the light, the hydraulic systems and the telemetry. Depending on the sampling requirements, different modules can be mounted under the main module.

In contrast to a conventional remotely operated vehicle (ROV), HyBis is not neutrally buoyant. Both the descent and the ascent of the HyBIS, as well as the operating depth are controlled from the ship by the fibre optical cable. Therefore, HyBis can deploy and recover a net load up to 700km (sampling equipment and sampling material), which is several times the payload of an ROV. As well as sampling the ocean it has also been used to help to recover two different seabed landers containing scientific equipment worth over £300k.

In its first four yeas HyBIS has dived over a hundred times, recorded more than 450 hours of HD video footage and taken 1,000s of HD photographs. It has undertaken complex sampling missions at over 40 different sites.