When you hear the word “drone” you automatically think of a lightweight aerial vehicle, hovering, zooming and swooping through the sky capturing stunning images of the ground many hundreds of feet below. There is another type of drone, however, and it is one which is becoming increasingly popular. The Chasing Dory drone is an excellent example of the kind of drone we are looking at, and the name is something of a clue. If you know the films “Finding Nemo” and “Finding Dory” then you know that they are set in a colourful underwater universe and that’s exactly what the Chasing Dory drone enables you to explore. It is an underwater drone with a camera, and it is part of an exciting new wave of drone exploration.

Just like aerial drones, underwater drones can range from easily affordable units to use as a hobby all the way up to expensive professional drones which make it safe and simple to explore parts of the ocean which would otherwise remain inaccessible. In many cases, a high powered drone fitted with a 4k camera can completely replace the use of a professional diver and can even reach places – such as the hull of a submerged ship – which a diver wouldn’t be able to get to.

The Chasing Dory underwater drone is at the recreational end of the market, bringing the exciting world of underwater exploration within easy reach of anyone who has access to the shores of a lake or the ocean. If you have ever wondered exactly what is going on beneath the surface, then this is your chance to find out. On the other hand, you might choose to buy an underwater drone in Canada so that you can take it along to your next pool party and impress your friends with the kind of underwater snapshots that would otherwise be impossible.   

The basic facts about underwater drones
The full name for an underwater drone is an Underwater Remotely Operated Vehicle – sometimes referred to as an underwater ROV. It is a robotic unit which can be wirelessly controlled underwater, and most models, including the Chasing Dory, are fitted with high powered cameras able to capture still images and videos as well as, in some cases, even being able to live stream underwater footage to dry land in stunning 4k.

How the technology works
While an aerial drone is directly controlled via wireless signals from a handset of some kind, underwater drones are slightly more complicated. That is because the wireless signals which control an aerial drone do not travel through water in the same seamless manner, and so an underwater drone has to be tethered by cable to a buoy which floats in the water. Data is then transmitted wirelessly to and from the buoy and the controller, and along the tether from the buoy to the underwater drone. The Chasing Dory drone is controlled via a smartphone, and once the link has been established it’s possible to view the images being captured on the screen of the phone at the same time as sending commands to the drone via the buoy. 

Some underwater drones use the Wi-Fi network rather than wireless radio signals, but this does limit the range within which they are able to operate. A drone which uses radio signals, on the other hand, can be controlled from a distance of up to 500 metres.  

As stated, drones come in a range of sizes and types, from affordable ‘hobby’ drones such as the Chasing Dory drone all the way up to highly advanced professional drones, and the type of drone will have a huge bearing on exactly what it is being used for. These are just a few of the uses which an underwater drone can be put to:

Underwater Photography
Most drones have a built in 4K camera and a degree of storage built in. This enables them to capture and save pin sharp images even at depths of up to 40 metres, as well as being able to stream sharply focused moving footage as they explore the ocean around them. Underwater drones are also equipped with lighting which enables them to illuminate the water around them as natural light often fails to penetrate sufficiently when a drone is operating at depth. 

Diving
Someone who is diving underwater can make use of an underwater drone in two ways. Initially, they can send the drone down to survey the area they wish to explore, enabling them to note any interesting features and, vitally, anything which might represent a risk of danger. In addition to this, the drone could then be controlled from the surface to follow the activity of the diver, creating a recording which could be used after the dive in order to monitor performance and iron out any mistakes.

Inspection
If you own a boat, it is vitally important that you maintain the hull in excellent condition. Normally this would involve hiring a diver to go down and inspect the hull and then report back. With an underwater drone like the Chasing Dory, however, the boat owner can carry out their own inspection of the hull quickly and simply at any time.

Fishing
For fishermen of the old school, this might sound a bit like cheating, but there is no denying the fact that using an underwater drone can make landing the catch of the day much easier. The drone can be used to pinpoint the location of schools of fish or even a particular target, enabling the anglers up on shore to know they’re casting their lines in exactly the right place.

The Facts About Chasing Dory
If you take a look at the Canada Drone store when it comes to choosing your first underwater drone, there’s a very good chance you’ll find yourself choosing the Chasing Dory drone, thanks to its combination of affordability, ease of use and high tech features.

• The Chasing Dory drone weighs just 1.1kg and measures 247mm by 188mm by 92mm.
• Once in the water it can pivot through 45 degrees to look either up or down, and the internal battery, when fully charged, is able to power a full hour of underwater exploration.  
• The camera built into the Chasing Dory drone has an F1.6 lens and a CMOS sensor which can record at 1080 pixels.
• The front of the drone has two 250-lumen lights mounted on it to illuminate the area being explored, and the drone has a built in colour-restore algorithm which maintains the rich colour balance of images, as well as 8GB of internal memory.
• When purchased the drone comes with a charger, buoy and tether, and the drone itself can travel as far as 15 metres from the buoy, with the Depth Lock feature keeping the unit stable in rougher conditions.
• Rather than using a separate remote control, the drone is controlled via a smartphone, and all the user has to do is download the Chasing Dory app.
• Images which have been captured can be customized using 19 different filters and footage can be shared on platforms like Facebook and Instagram.