In 2026, remotely operated unmanned underwater vehicles (ROVs) developed at Sevastopol State University (SevGU) and further refined by the company Robokorp (part of the ITG corporation) will enter the market.
The unmanned vehicle makes it possible to assess the wear of hydraulic engineering structures, detect defects, and perform other underwater tasks much faster, more cheaply, and more safely than with the use of divers.
Technically, we are ready, and the first sales are expected this year — we hope to finalize the first batch by mid-year. At the moment, the vehicles have attracted the interest of private service companies that provide port infrastructure inspection services in Russia.
Robokorp CEO Aleksei Chuklin clarified that the company acquired from SevGU, under a license agreement, a patent for a vehicle with a Y-shaped thruster arrangement. The design provides movement in all six degrees of freedom using six motors instead of the traditional eight, making the device more compact and energy-efficient without sacrificing maneuverability.
The design was adapted to customer requirements: the battery compartment was enlarged to increase endurance, a side-scan sonar was added (for operation in turbid water), as well as a hydroacoustic navigation system for precise positioning. At the same time, software development continues, including the expansion of the vehicle's intelligent functions. As a result, a full-fledged hardware-software system has been created for carrying out a wide range of underwater missions.
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