THE APPLICATION OF DYNAMIC POSITION SYSTEM TO COBALT-RICH CRUST SURVEY IN OCEAN

Current, wave and wind usually bring severe impacts on the efficiency of cobalt-rich crust survey in the ocean. The positioning accuracy will drop and the equipment is easy to be damaged. DPS(the Dynamic Positioning System),however, may keep the vessel staying at a point, or make it moving slowly in certain direction, or make it move following the rhythm of the equipment movement to reduce the affects of the external factors from the ocean to the vessel. This paper introduces the principles and functions of DPS, and some methods for cobalt-rich crust survey in the ocean, such as seabed film taking, seabed trawling, seabed drilling, piston sampling and ROV survey. By using DPS we may ensure a safe survey in the ocean with better data and information of cobalt-rich crust from the seabed.