Liquid Robotics is revolutionizing our understanding of the oceans with its unmanned sensor robots. And today, the company is announcing a new version, dubbed the Wave Glider SV3, with advanced capabilities such as a hybrid propulsion system.
Roger Hine, chief technology officer at Liquid Robotics, told VentureBeat the new model can use solar power for propulsion. The earlier models used wave energy for propulsion and solar power for sensors and communications. The new solar cells for the robot are 50 percent more efficient, allowing them to power the propulsion system.
Sunnyvale, Calif.-based Liquid Robotics gained a spot in history when it announced in December that Papa Mau, one of its data-collecting second-generation Wave Gliders, had floated more than 9,000 miles across the Pacific Ocean.