Created by a team at Japan's Okayama University, the MOS/AUV (Move on Sensing/Autonomous Underwater Vehicle) is designed to find its own way along the bottom of the sea or a lake, performing various tasks as it does so.

The craft's Move on Sensing system combines 3D stereoscopic computer vision with conventional sonar technology. According to the university's Prof. Mamoru Minami, this combination allows it to "search, track and pinpoint" underwater objects within an accuracy of 5 mm – although he hopes to reduce that figure to 0.5 mm.

The MOS/UAV can even follow objects that are moving at up to 10 mm/second, as might be the case if they were being carried by currents.