China is planning to export robots capable of locating marine cables buried beneath the seabed to regions including "Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Europe," the South China Morning Post reported Sunday, citing the official newspaper of China's Ministry of Science and Technology.
"By deepening cooperation in (these) offshore engineering markets, we will integrate Chinese intelligent cable detection solutions into the global ecosystem and bolster the international competitiveness of domestic marine equipment," the report said Monday.
The robots, developed by a team at Dalian Jiaotong University, can locate cables buried under silt with less than a 5% positioning error. They can also cover exposed cables with sediment to protect them.
The machines can operate 24 hours a day at depths of up to 300 meters (984 feet) and remain stable in strong ocean currents.
According to Chen Shaohua, a professor at Dalian Jiaotong University, the robots have two complementary eyes.
"The sonar system scans for the general location of the cable in wide, murky waters, while electromagnetic sensors lock onto the specific route," Chen explained.
The robots' decision-making speed was improved by 40%, thanks to advanced algorithms that filter out interference from the seabed.
Marine cables, which are vital for global power and telecommunications networks, are often damaged by shifting currents, geological activity and commercial fishing. Repairing them is a hazardous and time-consuming task.
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