It works like flying drones, only underwater. This is iBubble, a project by a French team including Guillaume Néry, the French free diving champion, and it works like a completely independent underwater drone.
For the moment, it is only a prototype presented last January at Boot Düsseldorf but producers ensure it will be available on the market in a month.
IBubble is provided with a small inner GoPro camera, which starts working when the device is plunged into water. A bracelet allows a remote control of it to scuba divers, who can consequently control it like a “standard” drone.
Movements are possible thanks to 8 propellers installed on the horizontal and orthogonal plan in order to allow all manoeuvres.
The drone will have a one-hour-autonomy, it will be able to reach 70 metres underwater and a maximum speed of a metre/second. On the surface, it can be easily located thanks to a light signal. Moreover, it is provided with some Led projectors which start working automatically depending on the light available.
The price? Producers don’t want to make a mistake. For the moment, it is unknown and it will be communicated on March 23rd.