Digital Ocean Lab

Digital Ocean Lab

A Major Step for the Ocean Technology Campus Rostock:
The Digital Ocean Lab, an underwater test field for marine technology in the Baltic Sea, began operations in 2021.

Fraunhofer IGD and its partners use the Digital Ocean Lab for a wide variety of underwater test series. The in-situ laboratory is located in the fisheries protection zone surrounding the artificial reef off the coast of Nienhagen, including the associated research platform. It represents the first development stage of the underwater test field, which is expected to be expanded in the future. A digital twin of the area enables preliminary simulations.

Technology and Consulting from a Single Source

For the first time, the Digital Ocean Lab provides a real-world environment in the Baltic Sea to test cutting-edge marine technology solutions aimed at making the use of the oceans as efficient and environmentally sustainable as possible.
“What we offer with the Digital Ocean Lab is quite unique. Anyone looking to validate their research or test their technology—whether it's underwater vehicles, measurement systems, or cameras—will find a suitable environment here. New materials and systems for corrosion or biofouling protection can also be tested under real-world conditions. Moreover, we provide scientific support for these tests and advise on the most suitable stress tests, sensor configurations, and data evaluations. Environmental compatibility is a major concern as well. We develop customized testing scenarios based on specific needs, which helps significantly advance marine technology research,” says Dr. Peter Menzel, head of the Digital Ocean Lab.
He is particularly proud of the high-resolution multibeam echosounder, which is highly effective for mobile sea surveying and is used, for instance, in mapping legacy munitions.

Real Test Environment with History

The artificial reef off Nienhagen has existed for 18 years, originally intended for studying various fisheries and marine science questions in situ—that is, in a real environment.
A cooperation agreement between the State Research Institute for Agriculture and Fisheries of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (LFA), which operates the reef, and Fraunhofer IGD in Rostock paved the way for marine technology research.
“Using the existing structures beyond fisheries and marine biology for technical testing was a logical step. Synergies are being unlocked, and entirely new solutions for pressing societal challenges are being developed together,” explains Gerd-Michael Arndt, head of the Fisheries Institute at LFA.

Many Test Scenarios – In Situ and Virtual

The technical equipment of the research platform lays the foundation for reliable test series. Thanks to solar and wind energy, the platform is self-sufficient in terms of power supply, and it also has an internet connection—crucial features for convincing technology providers and research institutions to use the underwater lab for their testing.
A dedicated technician maintains the platform and its connections, which are pre-configured for all standard sensors and survey equipment. Through the partner network within the Ocean Technology Campus Rostock, Fraunhofer IGD has access to boats of various sizes for deploying and retrieving technology for tests and measurements—and can offer these to partners and clients as well.
The Digital Ocean Lab aims to differentiate itself from other test facilities: step by step, the team is creating a virtual representation of the underwater test field using high-resolution multibeam sonar data. Combined with sensor data, current measurements, and more, this results in a Digital Twin of the real lab—thus truly earning the "digital" designation.
Companies and research institutions can run their new technologies or sensors through numerous virtual test loops and simulations before conducting complex on-site trials. Fraunhofer IGD’s RISTRA simulation tool enables extremely fast simulations by offloading computing processes to the graphics card (read more about RISTRA here). 

Initial Tests Successfully Completed

Various types of test series are already being conducted at the Digital Ocean Lab. For example, the Rostock-based start-up Framework Robotics GmbH is subjecting its 3D-printed structural components for underwater sensor systems to important real-environment tests.
The Digital Ocean Lab team supported the MiRo-Base project with practical tests for a new modular ROV (remotely operated vehicle) system. Fraunhofer’s own research group, “Smart Ocean Technologies,” also uses the test site. One of their projects aims to automatically determine microplastic concentrations in the world’s oceans and places test samples in the Digital Ocean Lab, to later develop and test hardware and software capable of detecting and analyzing microplastics.

In the future, up to 25 scientists will work interdisciplinarily on cutting-edge marine technology at the Rostock Fishing Harbor.
To build the staffing structure for research activities in the Digital Ocean Lab, the federal government approved 8 million euros in project funding in 2018, with the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern contributing an additional 5 million euros.
During the expected two-year cooperation phase, LFA will remain the operator of the area surrounding the artificial reef, while Mecklenburg-Vorpommern retains ownership. Afterward, the infrastructure and usage rights are planned to be transferred to Fraunhofer IGD.