Kraken SAS tested on US Navy AUV
Kraken Robotic Systems’ AquaPix mini synthetic aperture sonar (SAS) system with real-time processing has been successfully integrated and tested onboard a US Navy REMUS 600 autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) operated by the Naval Undersea Warfare Center.
The SAS system has been developed to detect underwater mines during naval operations by obtaining ultra high-resolution target data at long ranges.
An effective minehunting system requires at least 5cm of target pixel resolution and this can be achieved with SAS at ranges of over 250 metres. Conventional side scan sonars can also achieve this resolution but at very short range, typically limited to less than 25 metres.
AquaPix is designed for AUVs as a replacement for conventional side scan sonars for various military applications. The technology also has potential in other underwater imaging applications including offshore energy, seabed surveying, marine archaeology, debris mapping and search and salvage operations.
Karl Kenny, president and CEO, Kraken, said: ‘The major concern of mine countermeasures is to keep sailors far away from the mine threat while having a high level of confidence in the detection and classification of possible threats.
‘Real-time SAS signal processing onboard an AUV is a significant step forward from the current approach. Kraken’s real-time SAS can increase safety, improve operational efficiency, reduce the mission risk of missing mines and significantly reduce and/or eliminate post mission analysis time.’
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