An ocean going autonomous underwater vehicle "URASHIMA" equipped with a fuel cell

An ocean going autonomous underwater vehicle "URASHIMA" had its birth at Japan Marine Science and Technology Center (JAMSTEC) in 1998, aiming to obtain the solutions against various occurred on the ocean and earth, such as global warming, climate changes, earthquakes, volcanic activities and so on. "URASHIMA", which was equipped with a Lithium-ion rechargeable battery and hardware and software, was improved gradually in the first development stage from 2000 to 2002. In 2003 as the second development stage, "URASHIMA" aiming longer cruise of 300 kilometers was equipped with a Solid Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cell (PEFC) as the electric power source instead of the Lithium-ion rechargeable battery. In the near future, "URAHISMA" will achieve 300 kilometers over cruise and challenge the expedition under ice plates in Arctic Sea and observe status in various areas where ROVs and manned submersibles have not approached till now. In this paper, we show key technologies and systems of URAHISMA, and report successful results got by now.