Forever Oceans

Forever Oceans – Anti-Biofoul Remotely Operated Vehicle

Forever Oceans uses sustainable, deep-water aquaculture platforms to raise sashimi-grade fish for a variety of businesses around the world. The mariculture company operates through the use of net pen structures in offshore waters, which prevents harm to fragile ecosystems and incorporates the natural currents of the ocean to maintain a healthy growing environment. With the large net pens, substantial buildup known as biofouling, which can damage hardware and expose fish to harmful pathogens, is inevitable. In order for the structures to operate optimally, Forever Oceans must invest significant labor in cleaning efforts.

A team of industry professionals from Forever Oceans sought out the help of students in the UC Santa Cruz Corporate Sponsored Senior Projects Program (CSSPP) to develop a sustainable, robotic solution that automates the anti-biofouling process and significantly cuts maintenance costs.

The Forever Oceans CSSPP team—comprised of students Cameron Law, Wren Sakai, Matthew Benett, and DJ Gihring—was given a set of design goals to follow for their robotic technology, including being able to install and operate the unit for 7 days without human intervention, have it cling onto and anti-biofoul the net pen structures, have several different camera views enabled, and operate up to 30 meters below the ocean’s surface. 

Adhering to those guidelines and using robotics engineering theory and practice as a foundation for their project, the four-student team built a remotely operated vehicle (ROV), also known as an underwater robotic vehicle, to support anti-biofouling efforts. The team was given power supply technologies from Forever Oceans, an ROV to repurpose from, and a $2,500 budget to work with. The developed ROV consists of six main structures: power converter, electronics enclosure, net gripper, HDPE frame, biofoul cleaning thrusters, and cameras. 

“Our team was well-rounded. We had all the necessary soft and technical skills and the interdisciplinary knowledge needed to create a well-designed and capable underwater robot,” Sakai said.  

The team first tested their ROV in a swimming pool, which demonstrated all basic movement, stability, and anti-biofouling tasks. Because of the average six week duration for biofouling to naturally occur, additional quantitative biofouling research and ocean water testing is needed to ensure the robotic device meets all standards for real-world deployment. Sakai, whose focus was on mechanical design and fabrication of the ROV, hopes to work full time with Forever Oceans to support the ROV’s testing and deployment. 

When asked what were a couple highlights of the project, Law, who helped with the financial management aspects of the project and the electrical repurposing of the ROV, explained, “Having a project sponsor who was in regular contact with the team was really helpful. Tony, our industry lead, was always engaged and ready to help us. I also think it‘s important to highlight how this program allows students to fully develop their soft skills, from frequently communicating with our sponsors, our professors, and teammates to delivering various presentations throughout the two-quarter sequence.”

Tony White, director of innovation for Forever Oceans and the CSSPP project’s industry lead, spoke highly of the partnership experience. “The team accomplished some great work in a very short time. The program was well coordinated, and it was great to see all the group projects at the poster session.”