Two of Curtin University's commercialisation projects have been boosted by the receipt of commonwealth government grants to assist in their development.
The Commercialising Emerging Technologies (COMET) grants of $70,400 was each awarded to underwater camera developer Deep Vision 3D and mineral exploration service provider HiSeis.
These grants are some of the last to be awarded by the COMET program as it is replaced by the new commonwealth body Commercialisation Australia, which is set to begin operations early in 2010.
Deep Vision 3D is a company that has been set up to continue the development of underwater and hostile-environment 3D cameras, and to provide support and expertise in using the equipment.
It claims that remotely operated underwater vehicles (ROVs) equipped with its cameras can be used more effectively than existing 2D solutions, which are limited in their resolution and depth perception abilities.
The technology's developer Andrew Woods, from Curtin's Centre for Marine Science and Technology, says the limitations of existing technology are even more apparent in more sophisticated ROVs that feature robotic arms used to manipulate and maintain subsea pipelines and structures.
"Previous attempts at enabling 3D video camera systems for ROVs have not been successful due to issues of cameras losing critical alignment, and user eye-fatigue," Mr Woods said in a statement.
ROVs are set to be used more extensively as technology and commercial viability allow oil and gas exploration to head into deeper waters, and the company has already deployed its camera technology to complete work for major producers.
It also plans to develop a camera range for use in hostile environments in which the use of ROVs can deliver a health and safety benefit, as it does in deep water operations.
The other company recognised by the grants, HiSeis, a spin-off that uses techniques developed by academics at Curtin's Department of Exploration Geophysics.
The company uses seismic imaging technology commonly used in mapping oil reserves to explore and map more traditional mineral deposits.
The technology uses computer algorithms to give a 3D map of the ore-body being studied, and the department, lead by Anton Kepic, has been employed by a number of WA miners to study their mineral deposits.
The service has been generating annual revenue of close to $1 million, and a decision was recently made to develop the service into a separate company, in which Dr Kepic and another academic in the Department, Dr Milovan Urosevic, will be primary shareholders.
