Bluefin Robotics
| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Robotics, Autonomous underwater vehicles |
| Founded | 1997 |
| Founder | James Bellingham, Frank van Mierlo |
| Headquarters | Quincy, Massachusetts , United States |
Area served | Military and civilian applications |
| Products | Bluefin-21, Knifefish, Black Pearl AUV, Proteus submersible, SandShark Micro-AUV, HAUV |
Number of employees | 200 (2014) |
| Parent | General Dynamics Mission Systems (since 2016) |
Bluefin Robotics is a U.S.-based robotics firm located in Quincy, Massachusetts that focuses on creating and producing autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) for both military and civilian applications, along with associated technologies. Established in 1997, the company became a fully owned subsidiary of Battelle Memorial Institute in 2005. Among its primary products are the Bluefin-21 underwater search vehicle and the military-grade Knifefish minesweeping AUV, which the United States Navy deployed in 2017. Additionally, Bluefin has played a role in sophisticated Navy initiatives such as the Black Pearl AUV and the Proteus optionally-manned submersible.
Company history and overview
Founded by MIT engineers James Bellingham and Frank van Mierlo in 1997, Bluefin Robotics originated from Dr. Bellingham’s prior leadership at the MIT AUV laboratory.
In 2005, Battelle Memorial Institute, a nonprofit research and development organization based in Ohio, acquired Bluefin Robotics as a wholly owned subsidiary. The company was honored with a gold award at the 2010 Team Massachusetts Economic Impact Awards and received accolades from R&D Magazine and Robotics Business Review in 2013. In April 2014, Bluefin secured a $7.11 million contract from the U.S. Navy's Office of Naval Research to advance development of the Black Pearl AUV.
By 2014, Bluefin employed around 200 personnel. The firm maintains memberships with several industry associations including the Marine Technology Society (MTS), Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI), Mine Warfare Association (MINWARA), National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA), and Massachusetts Technology Leadership Council (MassTLC).
In February 2016, Bluefin Robotics was acquired by General Dynamics Mission Systems, becoming part of their Maritime and Strategic Systems division. The financial details of this transaction were not publicly released.
In the media
The Bluefin-21, a torpedo-shaped multipurpose autonomous underwater vehicle, gained significant attention during the search efforts for Malaysian Airlines Flight MH370.
Developed in collaboration with General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems, the Knifefish is a minesweeping AUV intended to replace marine mammals in U.S. Navy mine countermeasure operations conducted alongside Littoral Combat Ships. Its sea trials commenced in 2015 with deployment planned for 2017.
The Bluefin SandShark Micro-AUV, weighing less than 15 pounds, supports various U.S. Navy missions including intelligence gathering, surveys, communication relay, training exercises, and decoy operations.
HAUV is a portable hovering AUV designed for real-time inspection of ship hulls. Notably, it conducted an inspection of the USS Constitution in 2011. In partnership with the Office of Naval Research, Bluefin introduced the third-generation HAUV-3 in 2016, which improved capabilities for structural evaluation.