It’s been a while since we sent out an update, but we’ve gotten a lot done! We’ve shipped almost 450 T100 Thrusters so far and we’ve shipped out all standard OpenROV Compatible Kits! We haven’t revealed a whole lot about the OpenROV Kit, so most of this update will describe that. Upcoming in the next week or two, we will have reports on the BlueESC and T200 Thruster as well as some very exciting depth testing results.
OpenROV Compatible Kit
Here’s what comes with each kit:
- 2 x T100 Thrusters (standard)
- 1 x M100 Motor (vertical thruster)
- 1 x M100 Propeller
- 1 x OpenROV Mounting Hardware Kit
You already know what the T100 Thrusters look like. Here’s what the M100, propeller, and mounting hardware kit look like:
![](https://s3.amazonaws.com/ksr/assets/003/223/516/5e19cbdad0cff9c576077438c71643fc_large.png?1422898226)
The propeller is 3D printed in polished black plastic and designed to fit the OpenROV vertical thruster position. It uses a similar blade profile and shape as the T100 Propeller. It’s designed for efficient thrust in both directions, which is particularly important on the OpenROV.
Here’s a close up:
![](https://s3.amazonaws.com/ksr/assets/003/223/535/3b2f171729d096e7b0001f7d3301a27b_large.png?1422898498)
The M100 is slightly too large to mount directly to the original motor mounting holes in the OpenROV. We made an adapter specifically for the OpenROV that mates with the motor mounting holes on the OpenROV up to version 2.6. You’ll have to drill a few holes in the acrylic on OpenROV 2.7 because it uses a different motor. The adapter is CNC machined anodized aluminum and it comes with SS316 mounting hardware. Check it out:
![](https://s3.amazonaws.com/ksr/assets/003/223/556/a6cfee99dd7268e97047c22084968e4c_large.png?1422898661)
When you put it all together, you get a powerful corrosion-proof motor that fits perfectly into the OpenROV. Here’s all the pieces assembled:
![](https://s3.amazonaws.com/ksr/assets/003/223/564/bcd1e5ef139ec2144c4bb8da0c07fe15_large.png?1422898758)
Here are a few pictures of the motor installed into the vertical thruster position on the OpenROV 2.6.
![](https://s3.amazonaws.com/ksr/assets/003/223/591/23542878bebfdc410a1eaad6d9fc3aa6_large.png?1422899184)
![](https://s3.amazonaws.com/ksr/assets/003/223/594/c5ba25cf40e516e6c42f99e2fa9af9f1_large.png?1422899211)
Installation Instructions
Although we’ve shipped the OpenROV kits, we haven’t finished the installation tutorial. We are working on it and it should be available in the next week or so. If you’re feeling adventurous you can try to install the kit before then – we would love to get your feedback and any pictures that you take during the process!
Once complete, the instructions will be available here:
http://docs.bluerobotics.com/openrov/Upcoming
We’ve made a lot of progress on the BlueESC, T200 Thruster, and the BlueROV. We’ll be going into production on all three soon. We are delayed compared to our original schedule, but we think you’ll be very happy with the results. We’ve put a lot of time into each of these products and they are all out-performing our original expectations.
Stay tuned!
Reminders
Remember, if you have any questions or want to share your project, check out our discussion forums at:
http://forums.bluerobotics.comFor documentation on all of our products, check out our documentation page:
http://docs.bluerobotics.comAs always, please don’t hesitate to ask us any questions, either on the forums or by email at [email protected].