ROVCentral: Chasing Dory Tillicum Bridge Ocean Test

Join me for a run-through on what I think of the Chasing Dory ROV, including footage from an "ocean test dive" where I took the underwater drone to a nearby saltwater inlet and explored the area around Tillicum Bridge (Victoria, BC, Canada).


The inlay clip of 1960s ROV technology features the CURV-1 and comes from this US Navy video, "Footprints In The Sea" (Creative Commons): https://archive.org/details/gov.dod.dimoc.25183

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From ROVCentral

Unboxing Dory - Lake Test

After getting the Chasing Dory out of its box, I took it to a nearby lake for a freshwater dive test.

Things didn't go exactly as planned. The controls didn't seem very responsive and the interface kept telling me "Unlock Failed" - it seemed to be putting itself in some kind of slow mode or safe mode. I'll need to try again without my Assistant accompanying me, because I think this will require some dedicated concentration to figure out.

Or I could research it. That might also help.

The ROV was able to get down to what seemed like a six or seven foot depth (the purple segment of the video), whereupon it hit the lakebed so hard that it kicked up a cloud of sediment.

Toward the end of the test, the screen glitched out and the top half of the video feed was solid grey - I was worried that maybe water had leaked into the electronics, but a subsequent test at home shows that things are working fine.

It's too bad that the ROV wash station was out of order, otherwise I'd have been able to wash things off right there at the lake. Instead, I took it home and hosed it down and used the included metal pick tool to pluck some fibrous debris out of one of the props.

All in all, it was actually a successful test. Sure, I have to figure out the controls and how to get it to use full power, and I have to explore using the Tilt Up/Down functionality to film the sea floor instead of crashing into it, but the ROV definitely works.

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Music by DeadAgent, SGT_SLTR_MLN available now at https://deadagent.net/

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From ROVCentral

Unboxing Dory - Bathtub Test

Testing the Chasing Dory ROV in a bathtub proved to be a good way to demonstrate video recording capabilities & get used to the application UI, but not the best way to get a feel for steering and navigation. Deeper waters will be required.


Music: Oceans/Rivers/Canyons, by ELPHNT. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bhqVosgbwlQ

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From ROVCentral

Unboxing Dory (2019-12-06)

Unboxing the new "Chasing Dory" ROV (Remotely Operated Vehicle, or Underwater Drone) for underwater exploration. I acquired this unit as part of Chasing Innovations recent Kickstarter for their third - and smallest - consumer ROV model.

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From ROVCentral

Remote Work, Episode One: The Open-Plan Office

In this video, I rent a boat and head into the most open-plan office there is: the Pacific Ocean*. No distractions here, just water and wind and code.

Remote Work doesn't just mean working from home. Depending on the requirements of your job, anywhere you can get an Internet connection (and even some places you can't) can be your personal office.


* Okay, technically it is only the Strait of Juan de Fuca, which is part of the Salish Sea in the Pacific Northwest.

From Project SPINNAKER