At this year’s edition of Euronaval Awards for Innovation, the jury decided not to play favourites by moving away from the notion of first, second and third place. Instead, out of 30 candidates, the jury chose to delivered four awards to four companies on the basis of: innovation, sustainability, duality and credibility. The four laureates were:
- Arkeocean, a French start-up based in the South of France, won the award for its SEAKER technology. The SEAKER and SEAKER + are “fully integrated (signal processing hardware included), agile and affordable acoustic USBL systems that fit on any underwater mobile, from divers to ROVs and AUVs,” according to the company’s website.
- Elwave, a French start-up based in Western France, uses biomimicry to manufacture and sell electromagnetic detection, navigation and characterisation systems. The inspiration for the biomimicry comes from fish that live in very opaque waters in South America and that use electromagnetic waves to navigate.
- Optics 11, a Dutch company based in Amsterdam, won the award for its innovative fibre optic sensing solutions. These solutions offer agile and versatile solutions for underwater acoustics.
- Thales Six was delivered the award for its quantum antenna. Quantum technology allows to dramatically decrease antenna size, a significant concern for many navies seeking to optimise system’s footprints on their capabilities.
