A Sussex firm has been awarded a £45,000 government grant to develop a remote-controlled marine survey vessel.

Seaspeed Technology, from Chichester, won a Smart Award grant aimed at encouraging innovation from the Department of Trade and Industry's small business service (SBS).

The firm has experience in the technology of a wide range of boats from fast ferries to research vehicles and specialist knowledge of hydrodynamics.

The grant will fund a project to prove the feasibility of the novel, marine survey vehicle, known as the survey autonomous semi-submersible (SASS).

The SASS technology involves an unmanned torpedo-shape body, running at below wave depth, with an upright strut penetrating the water surface. The strut provides buoyancy, air for propulsion, support for vehicle launch and recovery and the ability to use radio frequency coverage for communications and positioning.

The project aims to show SASS technology can be used to send signals to and from ships up to horizon range, reducing time and costs.

Survey sensors will be able to operate away from the engine noise of a ship and other pollution, reducing danger when surveying in hostile regions.