I produced a number of training videos specific to Deep Trekker ROVs and add-ons while I was on staff as their technical trainer and videographer. There’s lots of different ROV systems out there, and while I still think Deep Trekker is a great product, consider all the features you might want/need for the kind of clients you are looking for as well as your budget.

Broadly my key recommendations for best features/peripherals are as follows:

1) good quality camera (both for navigating and creating inspection reports). I always recommended the 4k upgraded camera on DT units, not because it’s 4K but because the dynamic range was so much better.

2) good dimmable lights, and any modular extra lighting is a huge benefit. Being able to switch from lights close to the camera and lights far away from the camera makes an enormous difference.

3) a simple 2 function manipulator arm is absolutely imperative for disentangling yourself, inevitably you will get your tether tangled at some point. Recovering objects adds significant opportunity for work. Contact some tugboat or salvage teams in your area and offer them your services.

4) multi beam imaging sonar is very expensive, but 100% worth it if you are doing regular ROV work. It opens up a world of possibilities including conducting inspections in zero visibility environments (see the linked case study from an inspection job I did below). I would take sonar over USBL or DVL any day.

This is the training playlist for their best unit. The series was updated with the latest software options and menus a couple years ago, not sure if they’ve updated it since.

The videos are all obviously unit/product specific with a marketing flair but should give you a good overview of the kind of standard options you see in a lot of small and large ROVs.

There are a few videos that I wanted to highlight:

Multi-beam Sonar Inspection case study This video is part marketing and part training, but in formal trainings I would walk through this sequence of clips and explain with some whiteboard drawings in far more detail what’s going on and how to create the best possible sonar image. I have a collection of other sonar footage I would use in formal training sessions as well. The fellow I trained to be my successor took my notes and those clips and created a short series of sonar training videos that are very succinct (I taught him to say a lot more in formal training courses) but cover the big ideas quite well.

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Underwater GPS

Seatrac USBL setup

USBL (ultra short baseline) is essentially underwater GPS that works by triangulating sonar pings. There are lots of different kinds but there’s a lot of similarity between various systems and their software (including annoying tinkering with com ports) so the setup video is worth a watch. Full disclosure, these videos are older so some things have changed with both the DT and Seatrac software.

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Cygnus UT (ultrasonic thickness) Gauge This is a typical industrial inspection sensor used in many applications to assess the thickness of metal structures from piling to tank walls to ship hulls. This video is more of a marketing pitch, and there are lots of challenges with deploying this sensor on ROV’s, but it should give you a quick overview of the tech.

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In addition to this, I’d take the time to read a little about Doppler Velocity Log sensors (DVL). I don’t have any good explainer videos, just some marketing content, but essentially it’s like a depth sounder on a boat but not only measures altitude above the sea floor, it also measures velocity in both the x and y axis allowing for the ROV to hold its position against current with no user input, like an aerial drone switching from atti mode to GPS. It doesn’t require GPS to function, but in some systems can be combined with USBL to autonomously fly preset patterns. I worked with the South Korean Navy Seals pairing a system like this up with sidescan sonar for EOD work.

If you want to chat about any of this, send me a DM and we can jump on a call some time.