Sula 1 Portable Unmanned Surface Vessel

Sula 1 is a battery-electric unmanned surface vessel, 0.98 m long, that one person carries to the water in a car. It takes the light survey and monitoring payloads, such as a Seafloor HydroLite single-beam sounder, a SonTek RiverSurveyor M9 ADCP, a YSI EXO2 water-quality sonde or a hull-mounted side-scan, on lakes, rivers, reservoirs, ports and sheltered inshore water. We configure each boat to order, with RTK GNSS position and dual-antenna heading as standard.

Platform specification

Sula 1 is 0.98 m long and carries up to 35 kg of payload.

	Sula 1
Length	0.98 m
Beam	0.52 m
Height	0.255 m
Draft	8.5 cm
Mass	7 kg without payload or battery
Payload	Up to 35 kg
Hull	M-shape monohull in polyester, carbon fibre and Kevlar; IP67
Propulsion	Brushless motors in semi-embedded ducted thrusters; 900 W maximum motor power
Battery	Hot-swap lithium, 2 × 33.6 V 25 Ah
Endurance	3 h at 2 m/s; 7 h at 1.5 m/s
Maximum speed	7 m/s (13.6 kn)
Comms	2.4 GHz data link to 3 km; 4G
Wind and wave rating	Wind level 3, wave level 2

Payloads Sula 1 takes

Payload	Example models	Mount	Note
Single-beam echo sounder	Seafloor HydroLite, HydroLite Plus; Bathylogger BL200	Hull	Carried together with RTK GNSS on survey hulls of this size.
ADCP	SonTek RiverSurveyor M9, S5; Teledyne RDI RiverPro, RiverRay; Nortek Signature VM	Hull	River discharge and current profiles.
Water-quality sonde or sampler	YSI EXO2, EXO2s; Aquaread AP-7000; In-Situ Aqua TROLL 600; Eureka Manta+ 35	Hull	A full sonde weighs a few kg, so the kit fits with room to spare.
Side-scan sonar, hull-mounted	Cerulean Omniscan 450 SS; DeepVision hull-mount 340/680	Hull	Bracket-mounted on hulls of this size; also the fallback on larger hulls that cannot take two tows.
Multibeam, compact integrated head	Cerulean Surveyor 240-16 (IMU built in)	Hull	A compact head only. Survey-grade multibeam with a separate INS starts at Sula 2.
Fixed camera, radar, AIS	AIS Class B transponder	Mast	A common fit on 1 m survey hulls.
Satellite link	Starlink Mini	Mast	Optional. It draws from the hull battery, so it shortens endurance.

Where Sula 1 stops. Step up to Sula 2 for survey-grade multibeam with its own motion reference or survey INS and a sound-velocity profiler, a light towed side-scan, a stabilised thermal camera or EO/IR gimbal, or the Pro anti-jam set. Towed magnetometers start at Sula 5.

Applications

• Reservoir and lake bathymetry. Single-beam soundings tied to RTK for sediment surveys, within a battery day of up to 7 h.
• River gauging. ADCP discharge and current profiles on rivers, the work hydrometry bodies buy boats of this size for.
• Water-quality monitoring and sampling. A multiparameter sonde and bottle samplers on lakes, reservoirs and rivers.
• Harbour and marina depth checks in sheltered water. Along quay walls, where GNSS is blocked, the anti-jam option is configured to keep the boat on its line.
• Side-scan imaging of the bed in harbours, rivers and lakes, from a hull-mounted sonar.
• Small-area multibeam mapping with a compact integrated head, where a full survey-grade system is more than the job needs.

Sula 1 works in sheltered water only and runs up to 7 h on battery. Coastal sites need Sula 2 or larger.

Navigation

Standard: RTK GNSS position with dual-antenna heading, from a survey-grade GNSS heading receiver with light inertial (MEMS) aiding. The RTK correction feed comes from a base station on site or from network corrections over mobile data. On a hull this size the two antennas sit on a short mast, so the hull’s length limits the heading baseline.

Option: anti-jam navigation, Base set. A filtered anti-jam antenna, a compact inertial unit of industrial (MEMS) or lower tactical grade, and a compact Doppler velocity log (DVL) on a bracket or in a moon pool. The Pro set, with a multi-element CRPA with null-steering, a tactical-grade fibre-optic-gyro (FOG) inertial unit and a flush-mount DVL, starts at Sula 2.

With the Base set, spoofing detection with automatic source switching is configured and integrated per boat, and integration with the autopilot is available. DVL bottom-lock needs the seabed within range, which means shallow and coastal water. More on the tiers: GNSS-denied USV navigation.

Integration and support

Integration	Payload fitted, wired and calibrated on the hull, with sensor offsets and parameters set and the RTK correction feed configured. Autopilot integration is available.
Delivery	Commissioning on your water, operator training, and support from our UK and EU teams.
Ordering	Configured to order, quoted per boat.

Questions and answers

Can a 1 m unmanned surface vessel carry a multibeam echo sounder?

Only a compact integrated head with its IMU built in, such as the Cerulean Surveyor 240-16. Survey-grade multibeam with a separate motion reference or INS and a sound-velocity profiler needs a stable mount and steady power, which Sula 2 provides.

How much payload does a portable USV carry, and for how long?

Sula 1 carries up to 35 kg of payload and runs 3 h at 2 m/s or 7 h at 1.5 m/s on battery.

Can a portable USV take anti-jam navigation?

Yes, the Base set: a filtered anti-jam antenna, a compact inertial unit and a compact DVL. The Pro set, with a multi-element CRPA and a tactical-grade fibre-optic-gyro inertial unit, starts at Sula 2.

Can a portable USV tow a sensor?

Towed sensors start at Sula 2, with a light side-scan towfish. A towed magnetometer such as the Geometrics G-882 starts at Sula 5.

What water is a portable USV built for?

Lakes, rivers, reservoirs, ports and sheltered inshore water. One person carries it in a car and launches it by hand from a bank or slipway.