Cellula Robotics Ltd. (Cellula) has completed a Cone Penetrometer Test (CPT) system with outrigger legs for Fukada Salvage & Marine Works Co., Ltd. to be used with the CRD100 seafloor drill delivered in 2014.

The CRD100 standard landing legs are designed for hard ground, which is typically found in areas for mineral exploration.  Geotechnical CPT work is typically done in softer ground conditions, so the current leveling legs and feet will not provide sufficient force to level the drill.  Two concepts have been developed for different ground conditions:

• For medium strength soil, larger feet can be added to the current landing legs to increase the surface area
• For soft ground conditions, Cellula has developed a set of hydraulic outrigger legs that are fitted in place of the current landing legs. A water injection system is also included on the underside of each outrigger pad.  Water injection is used to break suction under the pads when the drill is recovered.

The CPT package uses an acoustic modem to transmit data from the CPT cone to the CRD100 in real-time.  The data is then processed with the depth of push information is added.  This data is transmitted up the fiber optic umbilical to the operator in the control van and displayed using a dedicated CPT software package.

Fukada Salvage and Marine Works Co., Ltd. (FSM), headquartered in Osaka, Japan is involved in marine salvage, steel structure installation, offshore engineering, and other infrastructural improvement projects. FSM is currently introducing deep-sea research equipment and other cutting-edge assets to a fleet of six offshore support vessels to aggressively tackle ocean development projects. For more information, please visit the FSM website.