Belgium orders R7 ROVs from Exail

Exail's R7 remotely operated vehicle has been procured for the Belgian Navy. (Exail)

Exail has been contracted to supply six R7 remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) for the Belgian Navy, the company announced on 2 April.

The ROVs will be used for the inspection and disposal of underwater explosive ordnance, as well as safeguarding harbours, coastal areas, ships, and key infrastructures.

Launched in October 2021, Exail's R7 ROV is a small, compact manportable system designed for operation from small craft such as rigid-hulled inflatable boats (RHIBs) or from the shore.

It has a length of 780 mm, a width of 551 mm, and a height of 424 mm and can operate to a depth of up to 300 m and in temperatures of between -2ºC and 37ºC.

The R7 is described by the company as easy to deploy and features a highly intuitive human-machine interface. Based around a modular architecture, it can be equipped with a wide range of sensors and tools, including a robotic arm.

The R7 carries a special payload equipped with a neutralisation charge for explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) missions. For highly accurate positioning it is equipped with an inertial navigation system (INS), Doppler velocity log (DVL), and ultra-short baseline (USBL) sensors. Other equipment include a multibeam sonar and an Orphie 12S camera that enables precise target detection and identification in a wide range of conditions.

The R7 is battery-powered and propelled by a seven DC thruster configuration that includes four vectored horizontal and three vertical thrusters.

For more information on the R7 ROV, please seeR7 .