RU2766365C1 - Controlled mobile hydroacoustic buoy-beacon - Google Patents

Abstract

FIELD: marine technology.

SUBSTANCE: invention relates to the field of marine technology and is intended for navigation equipment of sea areas using underwater vehicles. A controlled mobile sonar buoy-beacon is an autonomous unmanned underwater vehicle equipped with an onboard inertial navigation control system, a power plant with an energy source and an engine, a propeller, steering gear drives and an external tail with rudders, hydrostatic and hydrodynamic pressure sensors. In a separate compartment of the underwater vehicle there is a hydroacoustic beacon buoy with a transceiver radio antenna of a satellite navigation system and equipment for receiving and transmitting hydroacoustic signals, a current source and control equipment with a computing device, a device for recognizing "friend or foe" request signals, a decoder and an encoder. An autonomous unmanned underwater vehicle has one or more ballast compartments with devices for filling them with water and drainage, an acoustic profiler, a memory device, at least one hydrophone, equipment for monitoring the operability of onboard equipment, a radio transceiver with a current source and a communication float with a transceiver antenna located in it, which is connected to the onboard inertial navigation control system by a cable wound on a reel having a drive and a control device.

EFFECT: provision of necessary navigational information for its underwater objects in a given sea area.

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Description

The invention relates to the field of marine engineering and is intended for navigational equipment of marine areas with the use of underwater vehicles.

It is known that the navigation equipment of sea areas ensures the safety of navigation (navigation) in them and serves to determine the coordinates of ships and vessels at sea, as well as for their correct orientation when sailing in coastal and shallow water areas. It is a system of special coastal and floating structures, structures and devices, including coastal and floating beacons, luminous and non-luminous signs, navigation lights, floating warning signs (buoys and milestones), radio, radar and hydroacoustic beacons, ground stations of radio navigation systems and other means [1].

Most of the aids to navigation are installed on the shore or on the surface of the water and serve to provide surface watercraft. Providing submarines (submarines and underwater vehicles) with navigation data is the most difficult task. Sonoacoustic beacons (SAM) and sonar buoys-beacons (SABM) have found wide application for them.

Bottom GAM, being an analogue of the invention, is capable of providing navigation data to underwater craft in almost all areas of the World Ocean. The range of its action reaches 20-25 km, and the setting depth is 6000 m [2, p. 292]. It consists of the following elements [2, p. 302-304]:

- an acoustic antenna with a cylindrical or rod piezoceramic transducer and a float for lifting it above the ground;

- power supply, electronic equipment with a receiving amplifier and a duty channel decoder, placed in a solid beacon housing serving as an anchor;

- a bay with a cable-cable connecting the robust housing with the antenna, and located in a removable casing;

- a braking (shock-absorbing) device that protects the beacon from damage when it hits rocky ground, located in the lower part of the robust housing.

After the bottom GAM is dropped into the water and reaches the set depth, the float with the antenna is separated from the strong body and the GAM is transferred to the standby mode.

The bottom GAM is a disposable navigation device in the area of its installation, which is its significant drawback.

There is a floating bottom GAM that can be reused. It has a pop-up part with an antenna and a container with electronic equipment, an anchor and an attachment point for a pop-up part with a cutter and a squib. On command or after a predetermined time on the ground, the squib is triggered, the cutter cuts the cable of the electronic equipment connecting it to the power source located in the anchor, after which the antenna and the container with the beacon electronic equipment float to the surface, where they are lifted out of the water for further use . The duration of the beacon operation is limited by the duration of its power source and is 10-30 days [2, p. 305-306]. This MAM has a technically complex and most valuable part that can be used repeatedly, however, its reuse requires the MAM to be equipped with a new anchor and power source, which increases the time of its reuse and inevitably reveals to outside observers the nature of the work carried out in the area.

As an analogue of the invention, an underwater navigation and communication system "Positioner" is known, including a control point and associated autonomous uninhabited underwater vehicle (AUV) and a sonar buoy-beacon (GABM) with satellite communication and navigation equipment. Navigational information is transmitted to surface and underwater craft from the AUV maneuvering in a given sea area, which periodically updates it from the SAMMA via underwater sound communication. GABM has a hardware located in a plastic case, a power supply system, radio and hydroacoustic equipment, including a VHF radio station, a GLONASS receiver, a set of satellite communications systems and underwater communications equipment. GABM are performed in three versions: bottom, floating and frozen in ice. The bottom HAMM has an anchor, the drifting one has a protective housing with hardware, additional batteries and floats, and the HAMM frozen into ice is equipped with a high-strength thermal container [3].

GABM and AUV interact in the following modes:

- “request”, when, at the request of the AUV, the GABM transmits to it via a hydroacoustic communication channel the data received from the satellite;

- "dialogue", in which the SAM connects the control point with the AUV in real time via the VHF radio channel, providing control of the location of the AUV and its control;

- "autonomous", when the AUV checks with the GABM its coordinates via the hydroacoustic communication channel and acts independently;

- "emergency", serving to broadcast a distress signal from the AUV to the control point.

The main disadvantage of the SAM when it is used as part of existing navigation and communication systems is its lack of mobility and efficiency of the navigation equipment of the sea area.

The prototype of the invention is a mobile sonobuoy-beacon [4], having a power source, control equipment, a float with an antenna and a receiver of a satellite navigation system of the GLONASS type, as well as equipment for receiving and transmitting hydroacoustic signals. The mobility of the GABM is provided by the AUV, in a separate module of which the GABM is located.

In addition, the mobile GABM has:

- a device for separating the float and returning it back with a drive and a coil with a cable connecting the control equipment with the receiver of the satellite navigation system located in the float;

- a device for recognizing the signals of the request "friend or foe" to allow the transmission of the requested information;

- an encoder that converts the transmitted information and prevents its recovery in case of interception by foreign objects;

- a decoder that performs the reverse transformation of the received information;

- computing device;

- hydrostatic and hydrodynamic pressure sensors necessary for calculating the drift speed of the mobile HAMM when laying on the ground, as well as calculating the parameters of the horizontal drift of the pop-up float relative to the setting point.

Mobile GABM works as follows.

Upon arrival at a given point, the mobile GABM floats to the set depth, drifts and separates the float from the antenna and the receiver of the satellite navigation system. The float floats to the surface, where it receives its coordinates from the satellite and transmits them via cable to the control equipment. After that, the mobile GABM starts diving and lays down on the ground.

The pop-up float with the equipment for receiving and transmitting signals from the sonar buoy-beacon is connected by cable to the control equipment located in the AUV compartment. The length of the cable is adjusted by the device for separating the float and returning it. The true geographic coordinates of the SAM are calculated in a computing device, taking into account the readings of the hydrostatic and hydrodynamic pressure sensors, the AUV diving depth and the cable length.

The GABM transmits the necessary navigation information to an underwater object after receiving a request from it via a hydroacoustic channel confirming that it is “one of its own”.

The relocation of the mobile GABM to another area is carried out by a command from the control point, broadcast via a hydroacoustic communication channel from a floating craft that arrived in the area of operation of the GABM. At the same time, the mobile GABM selects a cable with a float on board, floats up, starts the mover and, in accordance with the task, moves to a new area, where it specifies its coordinates and sinks to the bottom [4]. However, due to the possibly high viscosity of the soil, the ascent of the GBM can be difficult due to its silting and “sucking” to the ground, which is a significant drawback of the mobile GBM.

Another disadvantage of the mobile GABM is the lack of a regularly operating communication channel with the control point, which makes it necessary to use floating craft entering the area to issue a new task. In addition, the SAM does not provide control over the technical condition of its onboard equipment and does not monitor objects passing through the area, since it does not have the appropriate equipment and communication with the control point.

To assess the properties of bottom soil when laying a mobile sonar buoy-beacon on the bottom, an acoustic profiler with a parametric acoustic antenna and equipment for signal processing can be used [5].

The aim of the invention is the development of a mobile sonar buoy-beacon that provides the necessary navigation information to its underwater objects operating in the area, having a regular communication channel with the control point and equipment that controls the technical condition of the onboard equipment, capable of selecting a suitable platform with solid soil for laying on the ground and producing monitoring of the aquatic environment.

To achieve the goal of the invention, a controlled mobile sonar buoy-beacon is proposed, which is an autonomous uninhabited underwater vehicle equipped with an onboard inertial navigation control system, a power plant with an energy source and an engine, a propulsion device, servo drives and external plumage with rudders, hydrostatic and hydrodynamic pressure sensors , a sonar buoy-beacon is located in a separate compartment of the underwater vehicle, having a transceiver antenna of a satellite navigation system and equipment for receiving and transmitting hydroacoustic signals, a power source and control equipment with a computing device, a device for recognizing "friend or foe" request signals, a decoder and an encoder.

Additionally, an autonomous uninhabited underwater vehicle has one or more ballast compartments with devices for filling them with water and draining them, an acoustic profiler, a memory device, at least one hydrophone, equipment for monitoring the onboard equipment, transceiver radio equipment with a current source and a communication float with a transceiver antenna located in it. connected to the onboard inertial navigation control system by a cable wound on a reel having a drive and a control device.

Controlled mobile sonar buoy-beacon (KM GABM) operates as follows.

After entering the route task into the onboard inertial navigation control system (BINSU), the CM GABM is released on the route. Upon arrival at a point with given coordinates, it emerges to a set depth, raises a communication float to the surface of the water, establishes communication with a control point, and, using a transceiver radio antenna of a satellite navigation system, receives the exact current coordinates transmitted via cable to the control equipment of the GABM.

In accordance with the task or at the command from the control point of the KM, the SABM takes water into the ballast compartment, dives and examines the bottom with the help of an acoustic profiler in order to find a suitable platform with solid ground. After finding a suitable place, the GABM lays down on the ground. According to the readings of the hydrostatic and hydrodynamic pressure sensors, which are part of the SINSU, the length of the etched cable of the communication float and the depth of the AUV site, the exact geographical coordinates of the SAM are calculated in the computing device. The height of the buoy's distance from the ground consists of the known diameter of the AUV hull and the height of the lifted pipe with the buoy fixed on it. According to the interrogation signal of the underwater object, the KM SABM determines its belonging and, if the object is its own, then transfers the requested navigation information to it through the encoder.

In addition, the CM GABM monitors the water space in the setting area, using hydrophones and a memory device to store the noise and signals of passing objects and the information transmitted to them.

The communication of the CM GABM with the control point is carried out via a radio channel using a communication float, which is raised to the surface of the water with the help of a control device, a drive and a cable reel and a radio connection is established with the control point. At a great distance from the control point, communication is maintained through repeaters, for example, space or aircraft.

Upon completion of work or at the command from the control point of the KM, the GABM selects a communication float on board, lowers the pipe with a buoy, drains the ballast compartment, separates from the ground, starts the power plant and goes to a given area to change position or return to the base.

The presence of a communication channel with the control point allows the CM SABM to quickly transmit water space monitoring data on passing objects and information about its technical condition.

The device of a controlled mobile sonobuoy-beacon is shown in Fig. 1. The numbers indicate: 1 - KM GABM body, 2 - current source, 3 - onboard inertial navigation control system, 4 - control equipment with a computing device, a friend or foe request signal recognition device, a decoder and an encoder, 5 - ballast compartment , 6 - acoustic profiler antenna, 7 - acoustic profiler equipment, 8 - hydrodynamic pressure sensor, 9 - device for filling the ballast compartment with outboard water and draining it, 10 - equipment for monitoring the performance of onboard equipment KM GABM, 11 - hydrostatic pressure sensor, 12 - float communication with the transceiver radio antenna and radio antenna satellite navigation system located in it, 13 - buoy with hydrophones and equipment for receiving and transmitting hydroacoustic signals, 14 - cable, 15 - coil with drive and control device, 16 - pipe (cable channel), 17 - power plant, 18 - pipe lifting / lowering mechanism, 19 - engine, 20 - steering machines and their drives, 21 - rudders, 22 - propeller, 23 - outer plumage.

Installing the KM GABM to a given position is shown in Fig. 2 and 3. The numbers indicate: 1 - housing of the KM GABM, 12 - float for communication with the transceiver radio antenna and radio antenna of the satellite navigation system, 14 - cable, 15 - coil with drive and control device, 24 - horizontal motion vector of the KM GABM, 25 - ascent CM GABM to clarify its coordinates, 26 - sea surface, 27 - spacecraft, 28 - receiving coordinates from the spacecraft and communication with the control center, 29 - surveying the bottom surface with an acoustic profiler, 30 - seabed, 31 - diving CM GABM.

In FIG. 4 shows a communication session of the CM GABM with the control point. The numbers show: 12 - communication float with the transceiver radio antenna and radio antenna satellite navigation system located in it, 13 - buoy with hydrophones and equipment for receiving and transmitting hydroacoustic signals, 14 - cable, 26 - sea surface, 30 - seabed, 32 - spacecraft , 33 - radio link between the communication float KM GABM and the spacecraft, 34 - radio link between the spacecraft and the control point.

In FIG. Figure 5 shows the interaction of the CM GABM with the underwater craft (35), including the receipt of a request from it (36) and the transmission of navigation information (37).

The technical result of the invention is a controlled mobile sonar buoy-beacon designed to provide its underwater objects with the necessary navigation information in a given sea area. In addition, it monitors the aquatic environment in the setting area and, thanks to the presence of a radio communication channel with the control point, promptly transmits to it information about objects passing by, as well as data on its technical condition. He can leave the area of operations in time to move to another place or return to the base.

Sources of information

1. Navigation equipment. Naval Dictionary / Ch. ed. V.N. Chernavin. M.: Military Publishing, 1989. - 511 p. S. 265.

2. I.S. Kalinsky. Navigation equipment for maritime theatres. Leningrad: VVMKU im. M.V. Frunze, 1980. - 428 p.

3. D. Litovkin, A. Ramm. Underwater GLONASS has been created in Russia. Moscow: Izvestia IZ, 12/08/2016, https//iz.ru/news/650211.

4. Mobile sonar buoy-beacon and method of navigation equipment of the sea area / A.V. Ivanov, A.V. Novikov. Patent for invention RU 2709058. Moscow: FIPS, 2019. Bull. No. 35.

5. Acoustic profilers. http://incseatech.ocean.ru/index.php/gidrograficheskie-tekhnicheskie-sredstva/akusticheskie-profilografy.html

Claims (1)

Controlled mobile sonar buoy-beacon, which is an autonomous uninhabited underwater vehicle equipped with an onboard inertial navigation control system, a power plant with a power source and an engine, a propulsion unit, servo drives and external empennage with rudders, hydrostatic and hydrodynamic pressure sensors, in a separate underwater compartment The device houses a sonar buoy-beacon having a transceiver radio antenna of a satellite navigation system and equipment for receiving and transmitting sonar signals, a power source and control equipment with a computing device, a recognition device for “friend or foe” request signals, a decoder and an encoder, characterized in that it is an autonomous uninhabited the underwater vehicle has one or more ballast compartments with devices for filling them with water and draining them, an acoustic profiler, a memory device, at least one hydrophone, equipment for monitoring the onboard equipment, transceiver radio equipment with a current source and a communication float with a transceiver antenna located in it, connected to the onboard inertial navigation control system by a cable wound on a coil having a drive and a control device.

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