Hydroid Speeds Up Post-Survey Data Processing for UUVs

Hydroid has integrated an in-mission processor on a REMUS 600 unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) with the Kongsberg High-Resolution Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Sonar (HISAS) 2040.

By integrating the in-mission processing, the high-resolution images from the HISAS module can be quickly downloaded when the vehicle returns from its mission, Hydroid explains.

HISAS 2040 provides up to 2cm by 2cm resolution across a 300-meter swath. When combined with the onboard EM2040 it provides a complete, gap-filled image. Synthetic aperture sonar uses algorithms to synthetically lengthen the aperture, providing consistent resolution across the entire swath, both along and across track, as opposed to traditional real aperture side scan sonars. Because of the high resolution of HISAS, the files are very large and can take several hours to download.

With the in-mission processor, HISAS data are processed and compressed in real-time along with the navigation data, allowing immediate download of the sonar imagery when the vehicle returns from its mission through a 10 Gb ethernet switch. According to Hydroid, this is ideal for time-sensitive missions like mine countermeasures, where faster data access means safer, more efficient operations. Other HISAS applications include hydrographic surveys, pipeline inspection and rapid environmental assessment.

“The integration is the first of its kind at Hydroid, allowing faster processing of data to shorten post-mission analysis timelines,” said Duane Fotheringham, president of Hydroid. “We’re excited to offer this as an option to customers who have time-sensitive missions but also need the high-resolution data of the HISAS module.”