Adaptive Passive Heave Compensator
ANTARES is an adaptive passive heave compensator for subsea lifts where splash-zone crossing, subsea landing/retrieval, changing buoyancy or multiple lift stages need to be managed in one unit. It combines passive reliability with automatic damping control and quick lift ability.
Mature flexibility
ANTARES uses fewer components than older adaptive PHC designs, improving reliability and reducing cost. The design also adds practical offshore functions for handling, setup and operation:
- External pressure tested
- No pilot accumulator filling
- No oil/gas mixing
- Easy maintenance
- Improved seal configuration
The numbers, first
SWL 30–4,000 t · stroke 2.5–8.0 m| Maximum force (SWL) | 30–4,000 tStandard steps: 30 · 75 · 125 · 150 · 250 · 300 · 400 · 500 · 600 · 700 · 800 · 900 · 1,000 · 1,250 · 1,550 · 1,750 · 2,000 · 2,500 · 3,000 · 3,500 · 4,000 t |
| Stroke length | 2.5–8.0 mStandard steps: 2.5 · 3.0 · 3.5 · 4.0 · 4.3 · 4.5 · 5.0 · 5.5 · 6.0 · 6.5 · 7.0 · 7.5 · 8.0 m |
| Depth rating | 3,000 m |
| Architecture | Hydraulic cylinder · gas accumulators · self-centering spring |
| Damping | Automatic extension & return damping control |
| Operation modes | Locked · Splash zone · Subsea · Landing |
| Quick lift | Yes — multiple times per charge |
| Power | Battery operated — no umbilical · no external HPU |
| Cushioning | Full-stroke & zero-stroke hydraulic cushioning |
| Sealing | Double seals · externally pressure tested at the factory |
| Hydraulic fluid | Compatible with biodegradable fluids |
| Certification | Designed & classed to DNV-ST-0378 · double seals, pressure-tested · pull-tested in frame at FAT |
| Budget price | Configurations from approximately USD 100,000 |
| Documentation | GA drawing · datasheet · calculation sheet · OrcaFlex model — on request via the form below |
The weather window ANTARES opens
A representative deck-to-seabed install of a ~190 t subsea structure on ANTARES 250 t, screened across the full sea-state range in CONSTELLATION, our in-house time-domain lift simulator — head sea, representative winter climatology. The adaptive gas spring runs stiff through the splash and soft for a compliant seabed set-down.
The workable region reaches Hs 2.5 m at the design period (Tp 8 s). The marked design cell is the modelled sea state (Hs 2.0 m).
Modelled prediction screened to DNV-RP-N103 and ND-DS-10 on a representative metocean basis — an engineering estimate, not a certified analysis. The operating window is confirmed against project metocean and the contracted vessel for each lift.
See how we screen your lift →See ANTARES in action
All three films are rendered frame-for-frame from CONSTELLATION simulations — the motion you see is the computed result, and the telemetry is real.
Deck to seabed
A 150 t subsea manifold on ANTARES 250 t / 4.5 m at Hs 3.0 m / Tp 8.0 s, 150 m water depth — 67% of stroke used, wire tension held splash to seabed, touch-down 0.11 m/s, landing DAF 1.00.
Quick lift: clear first time
A 250 t module lifted clear first time from a heaving feeder barge on ANTARES 400 t / 5.0 m at Hs 3.5 m / Tp 7.5 s — 0 re-contacts against 7 for a conventional crane, clear by over 2.5 m.
Through resonance, in control
A 120 t open-top suction pile — about 430 t of entrained water in tow — crosses its resonance band near 1,300 m on ANTARES 150C / 5.0 m at Hs 2.9 m / Tp 10 s: DAF 1.94 on the rigid line becomes 1.02, peak wire tension 234 t down to 144 t, payload acceleration down 98%.
Passive reliability, adaptive control
Gas accumulators carry the load
ANTARES combines a hydraulic cylinder with a set of gas accumulators. The accumulators provide the spring effect, and a self-centering spring holds the unit at mid-stroke through the lift.
Damping controls itself
Oil flow between cylinder and accumulators is precisely controlled — with automatic extension and return damping control. Battery operated, no umbilical and no external HPU.
Four modes, one lift
Locked reduces required lifting height during lift-off from the vessel deck. Splash zone sets optimal stiffness and damping for the crossing. Subsea reduces stiffness and damping for high performance in the water column. Landing opens the valves and releases the EQ function for a soft set-down on the seabed.
Compact and rugged package
A considered mechanical layout protects key components while making adjustment, handling, upending and maintenance straightforward.
Committed to safety
We follow and exceed the testing requirements in DNV-RP-N202. ANTARES compensators have double seals to protect against water ingress and are externally pressure tested at the factory. ANTARES is pull tested in a frame as part of FAT, and all lifting points are pull tested.
Sustainability
Compatible with biodegradable hydraulic fluids for environmentally sensitive areas. The efficient passive design requires no external power supply during operation, minimising energy consumption and emissions on deck.
Engineered for precision
Designed on decades of experience with subsea and compensation equipment. Common problems and time-consuming actions are removed.
ANTARES’s lane in the Knowledge Hub
Adaptive passive heave compensation
How the adaptive gas spring works — and where it beats plain passive.
Read → KB · OPERATIONSQuick lifting
Clearing a heaving deck first time — with the Monte-Carlo barge lift-off study.
Read → KB · OPERATIONSSubsea lifts
Deck to seabed: hydrodynamic forces, resonance and landing speed.
Read →ANTARES, answered
What applications can ANTARES adaptive PHC be used for?
How does ANTARES adaptive PHC work?
- Locked — reduces required lifting height during lift-off from the vessel deck.
- Splash zone — optimal stiffness and damping settings for splash-zone crossings.
- Subsea — reduced stiffness and damping for high performance subsea.
- Landing — valves open and the EQ function releases for a soft set-down on the seabed.
What are the technical benefits of ANTARES adaptive PHC versus competing PHC units?
- Reduced leakage risk
- Easier and much faster filling of gas and oil
- Easier air bleeding
- Lower stiffness and lower weight
- No pilot accumulator filling/draining required, hence no need for an external HPU
- No risk of oil/gas mixing due to internal leakage in valves
- Automatic extension and return damping control
- Quick lift ability
- Battery operated — no umbilical
- Rugged, leak-free, normally closed gas valves
- Improved upending/shipping frame
- Better filling kit and an easier-to-use calculation sheet
When should I choose a RIGEL Basic PHC instead of an ANTARES adaptive PHC?
Send your lift case.
Lead time and project pricing depends on capacity, stroke and classification — fill in the form and we’ll send drawings, datasheet and a project-specific quotation.