Hubro: Rethinking Subsea Imaging Through Compact Multi-Role Design

Hubro: Rethinking Subsea Imaging Through Compact Multi-Role Design

What if less hardware could do more?

That was the question our Managing Director, Magnus Lindberg, put to the audience at the Society for Underwater Technology’s Gadgets & Widgets event in Aberdeen, where C-Tecnics shared the thinking and development behind our new CT3035 Hubro Virtual Pan & Tilt Camera.

Drawing on more than two decades of experience working with ROVs and subsea systems, Magnus explored how advances in compact electronics are creating opportunities to rethink the way imaging capability is integrated onto underwater vehicles.

More Capability. More Hardware?

Subsea systems have traditionally gained capability by adding hardware.

A requirement for another view might mean another camera. A need to inspect different areas can introduce a mechanical pan and tilt unit. Different operating conditions may require additional lighting, cabling, connectors and supporting equipment.

Each addition can provide useful capability, but collectively they can also increase weight, complexity, integration requirements and the number of potential failure points across a system.

This was a theme Magnus previously explored at FFU earlier this year in his presentation, Small Sizes, Big Possibilities: Rethinking How We Modernise the World’s Subsea Fleet.

The argument is simple: modern electronics allow increasingly sophisticated functions to be packaged into smaller systems. Rather than continually adding hardware, there is an opportunity to consider how much more the hardware already being installed can be asked to do.

Or, as Magnus put it during the presentation using a familiar Norwegian phrase:

“Det enkle er ofte det beste.”

The simple is often the best.

Introducing Hubro

Hubro was developed around that principle.

The compact high-definition IP subsea camera combines an ultra-wide field of view, virtual pan, tilt and zoom, integrated LED lighting and multiple simultaneous video streams within a single housing.

Its 170° fisheye view in water provides a wide overview of the subsea environment, while software-controlled virtual pan, tilt and zoom allows an operator to navigate within the image without mechanically moving the camera itself.

Integrated dimmable LED lighting brings another function into the same compact unit.

The result is a multi-role imaging platform designed to provide operators with greater flexibility while simplifying the equipment required to achieve it.

More Functions Within One Compact Camera

The thinking behind Hubro is not simply about reducing the physical size of a camera. It is about combining imaging functions that might otherwise require additional equipment.

Hubro provides three simultaneous video streams, software-controlled virtual pan, tilt and zoom, an ultra-wide 170° view in water and integrated dimmable LED lighting.

Together, those functions allow one compact camera to provide several useful viewing options without relying on mechanical movement.

Three Streams. Different Views. One Camera.

One of the central engineering challenges during Hubro’s development was making its three video streams useful independently, rather than simply producing three copies of the same image.

The camera can generate three simultaneous RTSP video streams, allowing different views and image configurations to be used at the same time.

For example, one stream can maintain a wide overview while another provides virtual pan, tilt and zoom. A further stream can be configured differently for another operational requirement, such as monochrome viewing or alternative image settings.

This allows an operator to retain situational awareness while simultaneously concentrating on a particular inspection area or task from the same physical camera.

For an ROV operator, that has practical implications. Different tasks can require an overview of the vehicle and its surroundings while another view concentrates on a manipulator, tooling operation or specific area of interest.

The multi-role approach behind Hubro asks whether more of those viewing requirements can be delivered through one compact imaging platform rather than continually adding separate hardware.

From Subsea Experience to Product Development

The thinking behind Hubro has been shaped by practical experience of ROV and subsea systems.

During his presentation, Magnus reflected on more than 20 years working around ROV operations and the way subsea systems have evolved during that time.

While individual components have become smaller and more capable, integrating new functionality can still result in additional cameras, moving mechanisms, cables and interfaces being added to a vehicle.

Hubro asks a different question: how many of those requirements can be addressed within one piece of hardware?

Developing that idea has required several years of R&D, taking Hubro from its initial concept through prototype development and into field evaluation.

The Full HD Hubro has now moved beyond the development bench and into subsea applications, providing practical feedback on how the multi-role approach performs outside the workshop.

The Next Engineering Challenge: 4K

Development has not stopped with the current Full HD camera.

C-Tecnics is actively developing the next iteration of Hubro, bringing the same compact multi-role concept to 4K imaging.

The 4K version represents the next engineering stage for the platform and builds on the work already completed through development of the Full HD Hubro.

The aim remains the same: increasing the imaging capability available from a compact subsea package without simply adding more equipment to the vehicle.

Taking the Conversation Beyond the Presentation

Following Magnus’ presentation, attendees had the opportunity to get a closer look at Hubro at the C-Tecnics stand and explore the camera alongside its supporting software.

The response led to plenty of conversations around subsea imaging, ROV integration and where a compact multi-role camera could potentially simplify existing systems.

Gadgets & Widgets also brought together a wide range of speakers and technologies from across the subsea sector, providing plenty of interesting and inspiring discussions throughout the event.

C-Tecnics was proud to sponsor this year’s Gadgets & Widgets. Having recently joined the Society for Underwater Technology as a corporate member, it was also our first SUT event since joining and a valuable opportunity to meet fellow members, reconnect with familiar faces and discuss some of the technology currently being developed across the industry.

Small Sizes, Big Possibilities

Hubro forms part of a wider engineering philosophy at C-Tecnics.

Modern subsea electronics provide opportunities to combine functions that historically required separate pieces of equipment. Smaller electronics, software-controlled functionality and increasingly capable sensors allow engineers to reconsider how those functions are packaged and integrated.

For subsea imaging, Hubro represents our approach to that challenge.

Three simultaneous video streams. Virtual pan, tilt and zoom. Integrated lighting. One compact camera.

It returns to the question Magnus raised at the beginning of the presentation:

What if less hardware could do more?

Sometimes, the simple really is the best.

Learn More

To learn more about the Hubro CT3035, explore the full technical specification or download the latest product datasheet, visit the Hubro CT3035 product page.