Hydroid Aquabreather

[Johnoly]

Some additional info, but wasn't able to get a lot of questions answered. The 2 cartridge cans that go into the rear of the helmet & O-ring sealed are both the same contents. It's mainly Potassium Super Hydroxide with some other small ingredients. The O2 that is released is contained and controlled by a valve in the helmet from the onboard computer. O2 is released and controlled to maintain PPO2 with depth. I couldn't get an answer how this is done, the parameters, fail-safes, etc. Leakage, N2, CO2, dilluent and other tech questions they didn't know. Just not a lot of tech info available. One answer on how venting excess gas, is thru a valve on the front near the mouth. Again, didn't get to see how this worked. This is still a prototype and hopefully ready for sale next year depending on interest, etc. The unit is estimated to sell for $3500-4000.

I also was able to meet up with @tech_diver at the Sea Pearls booth to share notes (great to meet yaa John !). He may be able to add some more answers & info.

In general, I think they are just showing a concept idea with a partial prototype. It might be in the DEMA pool, but again Don't know. Based on the large amount of people standing at their booth, people are very interested. I'll take a wait and see approach as the development progresses. Remember everyone thought the Scuba-Doo breathing observation bubble mini-sub would kill people and it has raked in multi-millions of dollars in worldwide sales, so I'll give this some time and see where it goes. P.S. Don't shoot the messenger{ME!},,I'm just adding the little info I was able to get.


Breathing Observation bubble mini-sub

 

[Scuba Lawyer]

 

[broncobowsher]

I took a moment to consider the buoyancy. Simply put, it has to weigh as much dry as the volume of water it displaces. If not, it floats. Watching the video, it wants to float. So if you weigh it down to the point it isn't trying to float your head off it will break your neck trying to wear it out of the water.

Might work better as a smoke hood.

 

[jgttrey]

Aside from the dozen or so immediate life threatening technical deal-breakers that come to mind, I just can't imagine having the balls to suit up in that thing on a dive boat. I'm not usually that concerned about appearances, but I sure couldn't do it. Not unless it was Halloween and I had the whole Vader outfit.

 

[JackD342]

Looks like it is on the DEMA pool calendar tomorrow. We'll see if it is a true demo or not.

 

[tech_diver]

Yep, we saw this thing. Of course, we weren't allowed to examine its guts.

Like Johnoly reported, there are several large technical issues like the absence of a diluent gas. in a breathing mixture rated to 42 meters that are not being addressed (ignored.)

There is a demonstration scheduled today at noon however the rumor is they did not show up for their last live demonstration.

I'll be there for the demonstration. If the guy's head explodes from a violent potassium reaction I'll have it on video for you.

 

[jgttrey]

Look forward to that report, thanks.

May the Force be with them....

 

[JackD342]

Yep, we saw this thing. Of course, we weren't allowed to examine its guts.

Like Johnoly reported, there are several large technical issues like the absence of a diluent gas. in a breathing mixture rated to 42 meters that are not being addressed (ignored.)

There is a demonstration scheduled today at noon however the rumor is they did not show up for their last live demonstration.

I'll be there for the demonstration. If the guy's head explodes from a violent potassium reaction I'll have it on video for you.

The DEMA app says their demo is at 2, not noon.
??

 

[tech_diver]

Okay, I just watched the 12 demonstration and there is another one at 2. The guy's head did not explode so they have successfully addressed one of the primary customer concerns.

But to be honest I have no idea what I just watched. The diver laid on the bottom of the pool for about 10 minutes with a thin stream of bubbles coming out of the helmet. It has a spare air tank inside it as a diluent and bailout.


Chemical oxygen generators have been in Aerospace technology for a while. But what I saw could have been done a lot of different ways and I don't know that I was actually looking at someone using a rebreather.

For me, scientifically, it's still like Bigfoot. Despite all the photos and videos, until I get to examine the body, I don't know what we're looking at.

 

[JackD342]

If I understood the narration correctly, production units available for sale are at least a year away. The pool diver did NOT look comfortable in the gear - constantly touching and handling it during the dive, especially when shifting orientation. Assuming the base technology is feasible, this execution is still questionable. Seems unnecessary to pack all the components into a helmet supported by head and neck (how heavy?) rather than strapping them elsewhere onto yourself. Unless you are making a prop for a movie...