USV Surveying: A Smarter Way to Measure the Water

When it comes to understanding the landscape, we believe that what lies beneath the surface is as important as what’s above it. That’s why Fox and Associates offers cutting-edge USV (Unmanned Surface Vehicle) surveying solutions, giving you detailed, safe, and efficient insight into the underwater world. 

What is USV Surveying? 

USV Surveying uses a compact, remote-controlled catamaran equipped with sonar technology to perform bathymetric and hydrographic surveys. In plain terms, it’s how we map the underwater terrain of rivers, lakes, dams, stormwater ponds, and coastal areas. 

Traditionally, surveying these spaces involved boats, divers, and a fair amount of risk. USV surveying changes that. It allows us to safely and accurately collect underwater data, often from the shore. 

How Does USV Surveying Work? 

Our USV is small enough to be carried by one person and can be deployed quickly in hard-to-reach or shallow water areas. It’s equipped with a single-beam echo sounder for smaller water bodies, and we can scale up with multi-beam sonar for larger or rougher environments. 

Once on the water, the USV glides across the surface collecting depth and spatial data. The results can be processed into a range of outputs including point clouds, digital terrain models, and discrete point files - whatever you need to make informed decisions. 

The Benefits to Your Project 

• Safety first: No one has to enter potentially hazardous or contaminated water. 

• Cost-effective: One operator, quick deployment, and minimal gear means savings for you. 

• Precise data: Get full coverage, not just a few data points. That means better decision-making. 

• Versatile applications: Whether you're managing sediment, assessing flood risk, or checking underwater infrastructure, we’ve got it covered. 

• Minimal disruption: Surveys can be done while operations continue, no downtime necessary.