13th of October we had the pleasure of welcoming 19 members of Vortex NTNU to our offices in Trondheim. It was an afternoon of presentations, test-tank driving and good conversation with some of Norway’s most promising young underwater engineers.
Vortex NTNU is a volunteer student organization at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology that designs and builds autonomous underwater and surface vehicles. The team was founded in 2015 and today has more than 50 active members from over 20 study programmes. They have built six drones so far, including the ORCA underwater drone and FREYA, their first autonomous surface vehicle. This spring they unveiled Nautilus, their most advanced AUV to date. Vortex competes internationally in RoboSub, the TAC Challenge and Njord, where students test their technology against teams from all over the world.
A partnership since 2018
Water Linked has worked with Vortex since 2018 and is proud to be one of their sponsors. Over the years we have lent and donated several of our products to the team, including the DVL A50. The next step will be to lend Vortex our Sonar 3D-15. We look forward to seeing what the team does with real-time 3D imaging underwater.
The partnership has three goals:
- Building a strong, lasting bond between Vortex NTNU and Water Linked.
- Bringing Water Linked technology to new audiences, nationally and internationally, through the team’s work and competitions.
- Inspiring students to specialize in advanced underwater technology and robotics, because the ocean industry needs curious, skilled people, and many of them are sitting in Vortex’s workshop right now.
Welcoming the next generation
Every year Vortex brings in new members, and this visit was a chance for them to get to know us. Both teams gave presentations. Vortex shared their projects and ambitions for the coming season, and we told them about Water Linked: who we are, what we do, and the opportunities we can offer students.
Some of our own colleagues know Vortex from the inside. Henrik and Andreas, two of our ambassadors at Water Linked, were both Vortex members during their studies at NTNU. Today they help build the kind of underwater technology they once worked with as students. Having them take part in the visit gave the Vortex members a chance to hear from people who have been exactly where they are now, and to see where a few years in Vortex can lead.
After the presentations, we gave the students a tour of our facilities, followed by food and mingling, which in our experience is where the best conversations happen. The highlight for many was taking the controls of an ROV in one of our test pools. There’s nothing quite like seeing the technology work underwater for yourself.
Looking ahead
Our thanks to everyone at Vortex NTNU for visiting and for the energy and curiosity they brought. We’re excited to keep supporting the team and can’t wait to follow their progress this season. Good luck, Vortex!
Want to learn more about Vortex NTNU? Visit vortexntnu.no.