A vibration-damping and stabilizing underwater towing body

Abstract

This invention relates to the field of marine surveying equipment technology, and more particularly to a vibration-damping and stabilizing underwater towed body. It includes a shell and a first slider disposed on the upper surface of the shell. The first slider is movable back and forth along the length of the shell and is connected to a primary tow cable. When the pitch angle of the underwater towed body is greater than a set pitch angle, the first slider moves towards the stern of the shell. Under the traction of the towing vessel, the primary tow cable lifts the stern of the shell through the first slider to maintain the underwater towed body in a set attitude. When the pitch angle of the underwater towed body is less than the set pitch angle, the first slider moves towards the bow of the shell. The bow of the shell rises and the stern lowers to maintain the underwater towed body in a set attitude. The first slider serves as the connection point between the underwater towed body and the primary tow cable. By adjusting its position, it effectively filters out small fluctuations caused by the vibration of the primary tow cable and the underwater towed body itself, and provides excellent vibration damping for the pitch fluctuations of the towing vessel and large-scale disturbances of the water flow.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of marine measurement equipment technology, and in particular to a vibration-damping and stabilizing underwater towed body. Background Technology

[0002] Underwater unmanned exploration vehicles can be used for tasks such as environmental monitoring, resource exploration, and target detection. For wide-area, long-endurance exploration missions, underwater towed exploration vehicles are mainly selected to carry out the work. Underwater towed exploration vehicles have advantages such as low cost and long operation time. Usually, the stability of the exploration vehicle directly affects the accuracy of data acquisition.

[0003] To ensure the stability of the detection data, a two-stage towing system is employed. The towing vessel first connects to a depth-stabilizing towed body via a primary towing cable. This towed body primarily serves to stabilize the depth and buffer vibrations. A secondary towing cable then connects to the detection towed body to carry out the detection mission. However, the movement of the towing vessel and the disturbance of underwater turbulence can cause significant fluctuations in the motion attitude of the detection towed body, resulting in substantial disturbances in the collected data and severely impacting data quality.

[0004] Currently, the attitude of a towed body is generally adjusted by adjusting the side wings or tail fins. Chinese patent CN112389615A discloses a deep-sea towed body and a method for adjusting the attitude of a deep-sea towed body. The attitude of the tail fin is adjusted by adjusting the pitch and roll motors, thereby adjusting the pitch and roll angles of the towed body. However, the deflection of the tail fin will also indirectly affect the heading and depth of the towed body, forming a coupling effect between multiple degrees of freedom, which makes the structure complex and the control logic complex, making it difficult to achieve precise attitude control.

[0005] Chinese patent CN118651346A discloses an ultra-stable deep towing system that adjusts the roll attitude and fine-tunes the depth of the towing structure by using side wings, and changes the position of the center of gravity of the towing body by moving a weight back and forth on a linear motion platform, thereby changing the pitch attitude and towing depth of the towing body. Its structure is also complex.

[0006] Therefore, in order to ensure the stability of navigation and measurement data, there is an urgent need to provide an underwater tow body with a simple structure and excellent vibration damping performance, so as to improve the operational stability of the entire towing system and ensure the smooth progress of the exploration work. Summary of the Invention

[0007] To address the shortcomings of the existing technology, the present invention provides an underwater tow body with a simple and reliable structure that mitigates the impact of the undulations of the tow vessel and the first-stage tow cable on the attitude, thereby maintaining attitude stability underwater.

[0008] On one hand, the present invention provides a vibration-damping and stabilizing underwater towed body, wherein the underwater towed body is connected to a tow vessel via a primary tow cable, and the underwater towed body comprises:

[0009] case,

[0010] A first slider is disposed on the upper surface of the housing. The first slider moves back and forth along the length direction of the housing. The first slider is connected to the first-stage towing cable.

[0011] When the pitch angle of the underwater towed body is greater than the set pitch angle, the first slider moves toward the stern of the shell, so that the connection point between the primary tow cable and the underwater towed body moves toward the stern of the shell. The primary tow cable pulls the first slider to raise the stern of the shell so that the underwater towed body is maintained at the set pitch angle.

[0012] When the pitch angle of the underwater towed body is less than the set pitch angle, the first slider moves toward the bow of the hull, so that the connection point between the primary tow cable and the underwater towed body moves toward the bow of the hull. The primary tow cable pulls the first slider to lower the stern of the hull so that the underwater towed body is maintained at the set pitch angle.

[0013] In some embodiments of this application, the underwater towed body is also connected to the detection towed body via a secondary tow cable, and the underwater towed body further includes:

[0014] The second slider is located at the stern end of the housing. The second slider moves back and forth in the vertical direction and is connected to the secondary towing cable.

[0015] When the depth of the underwater towed body is greater than a fixed depth, the first slider moves towards the stern of the shell, so that the connection point between the first-stage tow cable and the underwater towed body moves towards the stern of the shell. The first-stage tow cable pulls the first slider to raise the stern of the shell, thereby slowing down the increase in the depth of the underwater towed body's stern. The second slider maintains its original depth under inertia, so that the second-stage tow cable keeps the depth of the detected towed body constant.

[0016] When the depth of the underwater towed body is less than a fixed depth, the first slider moves towards the bow of the hull, so that the connection point between the first-stage tow cable and the underwater towed body moves towards the bow of the hull. The first-stage tow cable pulls the first slider to lower the stern of the hull, thereby slowing down the decrease in the depth of the stern of the underwater towed body. The second slider maintains its original depth under inertia, so that the second-stage tow cable keeps the depth of the detected towed body constant.

[0017] In some embodiments of this application, the upper surface of the housing is provided with a horizontal slide groove assembly extending along its length direction, and the first slider moves along the length direction of the horizontal slide groove assembly.

[0018] In some embodiments of this application, the horizontal chute assembly includes:

[0019] A first groove is formed on the upper surface of the housing, the first groove extends along the length direction of the housing, and the first slider is disposed in the first groove;

[0020] A driving component is disposed at one end inside the first slide groove;

[0021] A lead screw is disposed inside the first slide groove, the lead screw extends along the length of the first slide groove, and one end of the lead screw is connected to the drive component;

[0022] The first slider is horizontally mounted on the lead screw, and the lead screw is threadedly connected to the first slider. The driving component drives the lead screw to rotate, and the first slider moves linearly along the lead screw.

[0023] In some embodiments of this application, the width of the first groove is adapted to the width of the first slider. When the first slider moves, the two side walls of the first groove limit the first slider so that the first slider does not rotate synchronously with the lead screw, thereby improving the stability of the first slider during linear motion.

[0024] In some embodiments of this application, slots are respectively formed on both sides of the interior of the first slide groove, and the slots extend along the length direction of the first slide groove;

[0025] Sliding members extend outward in the horizontal direction from both sides of the first slider that contacts the first groove. The sliding members are placed in the slot to improve the strength and stability of the first slider installation and prevent the first-stage towing cable from pulling the first slider out of the first groove.

[0026] In some embodiments of this application, the slider includes two sliding plates arranged parallel to each other vertically, the distance between the two sliding plates being adapted to the height of the slot, and a roller being provided between the two sliding plates. The roller rolls along the inner wall of the slot, and the rolling of the roller against the inner wall of the slot replaces part of the sliding, thereby reducing the resistance to the movement of the first slider.

[0027] In some embodiments of this application, a vertical slide groove assembly is provided at the stern end of the housing, and the second slider moves up and down along the height direction of the vertical slide groove assembly.

[0028] In some embodiments of this application, the vertical chute assembly includes:

[0029] The second slide groove is vertically fixed to the stern end of the housing, and the opening direction of the second slide groove is away from the housing;

[0030] A guide rail extends along the height direction of the second slide groove, with both ends fixed to the second slide groove, and the surface of the guide rail is a smooth surface.

[0031] The guide rail passes vertically through the second slider, and the guide rail and the second slider are slidably connected. The groove and the guide rail move synchronously with the stern end of the housing. The second slider maintains its original depth under the action of inertial force, and the guide rail and the second slider slide relative to each other.

[0032] In some embodiments of this application, the underwater towed body further includes a main control unit, an attitude sensor for monitoring the pitch angle of the underwater towed body or a depth gauge for monitoring the depth of the underwater towed body. The attitude sensor or the depth gauge is connected to the main control unit to send the monitored pitch angle or depth of the underwater towed body to the main control unit. The main control unit is connected to the host computer at the ship end through a primary tow cable.

[0033] The main control unit is configured to: receive the real-time pitch angle of the underwater towed body sent by the attitude sensor; if the pitch angle is greater than a set pitch angle, activate the drive unit to drive the lead screw to rotate, so that the first slider moves towards the stern end of the hull; if the pitch angle is less than the set pitch angle, activate the drive unit to drive the lead screw to rotate in the opposite direction, so that the first slider moves towards the bow end of the hull.

[0034] Alternatively, the system receives the real-time depth of the underwater towed body sent by the depth gauge and compares it with the fixed depth of the underwater towed body; if the real-time depth is greater than the fixed depth, the system activates the drive unit to drive the lead screw to rotate, causing the first slider to move towards the stern end of the hull; if the real-time depth is less than the fixed depth, the system activates the drive unit to drive the lead screw to rotate in the opposite direction, causing the first slider to move towards the bow end of the hull.

[0035] The underwater towed body based on the above technical solution can be either a detection towed body that requires stable attitude in a first-level towed system, or a fixed-depth towed body that requires stable depth in a second-level towed system.

[0036] The first slider serves as the connection point between the underwater tow body and the first-stage tow cable. By adjusting the position of the first slider on the hull, it effectively filters out small fluctuations caused by the vibration of the first-stage tow cable and the underwater tow body itself. It also has a good damping effect on the pitching fluctuations of the towed vessel and large-scale disturbances of the water flow, which helps the underwater tow body maintain its attitude stability within the set pitch angle range.

[0037] The second slider, as the connection point between the underwater tow body and the secondary towing cable, can adapt to the adjustment of the underwater tow body's attitude caused by the movement of the first slider. This can greatly reduce the impact of the tow vessel's undulations with the waves on the underwater fixed-depth tow body and the detection tow body, ensuring that the detection tow body is not affected by the fixed-depth tow body and can perform detection tasks at a relatively stable depth.

[0038] The horizontal and vertical chute assemblies are simple, reliable, low-cost, and highly stable, making them well-suited for complex underwater navigation environments. Attached Figure Description

[0039] The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the invention and form part of this application, illustrate exemplary embodiments of the invention and, together with their description, serve to explain the invention and do not constitute an undue limitation thereof. In the drawings:

[0040] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the connection relationship between the towing vessel and the underwater towing body in Embodiment 1 of the present invention;

[0041] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the underwater towing body of Embodiment 1 of the present invention;

[0042] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the first slider in Embodiment 1 of the present invention;

[0043] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the first chute structure in Embodiment 1 of the present invention;

[0044] Figure 5 This is an exploded view of the horizontal chute assembly of Embodiment 1 of the present invention;

[0045] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the load chamber structure of Embodiment 1 of the present invention;

[0046] Figure 7 This is a flowchart illustrating the control process for the attitude of the underwater towed body in Embodiment 1 of the present invention.

[0047] Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram showing the connection relationship between the towing vessel, the underwater towing body, and the detection towing body in Embodiment 2 of the present invention;

[0048] Figure 9 This is a schematic diagram of the underwater towing structure of Embodiment 2 of the present invention;

[0049] Figure 10 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the second slider in Embodiment 2 of the present invention;

[0050] Figure 11 This is a schematic diagram of the load chamber structure of Embodiment 2 of the present invention;

[0051] Figure 12 This is a flowchart illustrating the control of the underwater towing depth in Embodiment 2 of the present invention.

[0052] In the picture:

[0053] 10. Underwater towed body; 20. Primary tow cable; 30. Towed vessel; 40. Detection towed body; 50. Secondary tow cable; 60. Horizontal chute assembly; 70. Vertical chute assembly;

[0054] 11. Shell; 12. First slider; 13. Load chamber; 14. Second slider;

[0055] 121. First lifting part; 122. First lifting hole; 123. First sliding part; 124. First mounting through hole; 125. Sliding component; 1251. Sliding plate; 1252. Roller;

[0056] 131. Power equipment; 132. Attitude sensor; 133. Counterweight; 134. Main control unit; 135. Depth gauge;

[0057] 141. Second lifting part; 142. Second lifting hole; 143. Second sliding part; 144. Second mounting through hole;

[0058] 61. First slide groove; 62. Driving component; 63. Lead screw; 631. Bearing; 64. Baffle;

[0059] 611. Card slot;

[0060] 71. Second slide rail; 72. Guide rail. Detailed Implementation

[0061] The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of the present invention, and not all of them. All other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art based on the embodiments of the present invention without creative effort are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0062] In the description of this invention, it should be understood that the terms "center", "lateral", "longitudinal", "upper", "lower", "front", "rear", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "top", "bottom", "inner", "outer", etc., indicate the orientation or positional relationship based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the accompanying drawings. They are only for the convenience of describing this invention and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, or be constructed and operated in a specific orientation. Therefore, they should not be construed as limitations on this invention.

[0063] The terms "first," "second," and "third" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly specifying the number of technical features indicated. Therefore, a feature defined as "first," "second," or "third" may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of that feature.

[0064] In the description of this invention, it should be noted that, unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, the terms "installation," "connection," and "joining" should be interpreted broadly. For example, they can refer to a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection; they can refer to a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium; and they can refer to the internal communication between two components. Those skilled in the art can understand the specific meaning of the above terms in this invention based on the specific circumstances.

[0065] Example 1

[0066] This embodiment provides a vibration-damping and stabilizing underwater towed body, such as... Figure 1 As shown, the underwater towed body 10 is a towed detection towed body, and its rear is not connected to other towed bodies; the underwater towed body 10 is connected to the tow vessel 30 via a primary tow cable 20. During navigation, the tow vessel 30 serves as the power unit, providing navigation power to the system. At the same time, the tow vessel 30 is equipped with a host computer for communication, control, and data processing of the underwater towed body 10. The primary tow cable 20 is a fiber optic composite cable, which has the functions of traction and signal transmission.

[0067] When the underwater towed body 10 is navigating at a fixed depth underwater, its attitude is mainly affected by the dynamic characteristics of the tow bar 30 and the first-stage tow cable 20. The tow bar 30 undulates or rocks under the action of waves, which is transmitted to the underwater towed body 10 through the first-stage tow cable 20, causing changes in the pitch attitude of the underwater towed body 10 and affecting the quality of the detection data. In order to mitigate the influence of the tow bar 30 and the first-stage tow cable 20 on the attitude of the underwater towed body 10, this embodiment provides an underwater towed body structure.

[0068] The underwater tow body 10 includes a shell 11 and a first slider 12 disposed on the upper surface of the shell 11. The first slider 12 serves as the connection point (lifting point) between the primary tow cable 20 and the underwater tow body 10, and can move back and forth along the length of the shell 11. When the tow bar 30 pulls the primary tow cable 20, the attitude of the underwater tow body changes accordingly. Figure 2 As shown.

[0069] When the pitch angle of the underwater towed body 10 is greater than the set pitch angle, that is, the bow attitude of the underwater towed body 10 pitches up, the first slider 12 moves towards the stern end of the shell 11, that is, the lifting point moves towards the stern end. The first-stage towing cable 20 pulls the first slider 12 to lift the stern end of the shell 11 so that the underwater towed body 10 is maintained within the set pitch angle range, ensuring the smooth progress of the detection work and the stability of the data.

[0070] When the pitch angle of the underwater tow body 10 is less than the set pitch angle, that is, the bow attitude of the underwater tow body 10 is pitched down, the first slider 12 moves towards the bow of the shell 11, and the first-stage towing cable 20 pulls the first slider 12 to raise the bow of the shell 11, that is, lower the stern, so that the underwater tow body 10 is maintained within the set pitch angle range.

[0071] It should be noted that the hull 11 is a low-resistance rectifier hull, which adopts a low-resistance shape design to reduce resistance and incoming flow disturbance during underwater navigation and improve navigation stability.

[0072] like Figure 3 As shown, in this embodiment, the upper part of the first slider 12 is the first hoisting part 121, and the first hoisting part 121 has a first hoisting hole 122. The lower part of the first slider 12 is the first sliding part 123, which has a cubic structure and a first mounting through hole 124 in the middle.

[0073] See also Figure 2 The upper surface of the housing 11 is provided with a horizontal slide groove assembly 60 extending along its length direction, and the first slider 12 moves along the length direction of the horizontal slide groove assembly 60.

[0074] Specifically, such as Figures 3-5 As shown, the horizontal slide rail assembly 60 includes a first slide rail 61, a drive member 62, and a lead screw 63. The first slide rail 61 is formed on the upper surface of the housing 11 and extends along the length of the housing 11, from a position near the bow end to a position near the stern end. The drive member 62 is fixed at one end inside the first slide rail 61. The output shaft of the drive member 62 is connected to one end of the lead screw 63, which is also located inside the first slide rail 61 and extends along the length of the first slide rail 61. The lead screw 63 has an external thread and passes through the first mounting through hole 124 of the first slider 12. The first mounting through hole 124 has an internal thread, and the lead screw 63 is threadedly engaged with the first mounting through hole 124. The drive member 62 drives the lead screw to rotate, and the first slider 12 moves linearly along the lead screw 63.

[0075] In this embodiment, the drive component 62 is a pressure-resistant, watertight, forward and reverse rotating motor, which can drive the lead screw 63 to rotate clockwise or counterclockwise.

[0076] The width D1 of the first slide groove 61 is equal to the width D2 of the first slider 12. The two side walls of the first slide groove 61 are in contact with the two side edges of the first slider 12. When the first slider 12 moves, the two side walls of the first slide groove 61 limit the movement of the first slider 12. When the lead screw 63 rotates, the first slider 12 is blocked by the two side walls of the first slide groove, so that the first slider 12 does not rotate synchronously with the lead screw 63, but moves linearly along the length of the lead screw 63. At the same time, it can also improve the stability of the first slider 12 during linear movement and prevent left and right swaying.

[0077] Furthermore, to enhance the vertical load-bearing capacity of the first slider 12, horizontal slots 611 are respectively opened on both sides of the interior of the first slide groove 61, and the slots 611 extend along the length of the first slide groove 61; on both sides of the first slider 12 in contact with the first slide groove 61, sliding members 125 extend outward in the horizontal direction, and the height of the sliding members 125 is the same as the height of the slots 611. The sliding members 125 are placed in the slots 611, and the slots 611 have a limiting effect on the sliding members 125 in the vertical direction, which can improve the installation strength and stability of the first slider 12 in the vertical direction, and prevent the first slider 12 from detaching from the first slide groove 61 when the towing vessel 30 pulls the first slider 12 through the first-stage towing cable 20, which could cause the underwater towing body 10 to be lost in severe cases.

[0078] When the first slider 12 moves within the first groove 61, the slider 125 also slides within the slot 611. The upper and lower surfaces, as well as the side surfaces of the slider 125 and the inner wall of the slot 611, are all slidably connected, which increases the resistance to the movement of the first slider to a certain extent. Therefore, in this embodiment, the slider 125 is configured to include two parallel and spaced sliding plates 1251. The distance between the upper surface of the upper sliding plate 1251 and the lower surface of the lower sliding plate 1251 is equal to the height of the slot 611. The slot 611 still provides a limiting effect on the two sliding plates 1251 in the vertical direction. Multiple parallel rollers 1252 are arranged between the two sliding plates 1251. The rotation axes of the rollers 1252 are parallel to each other and perpendicular to the sliding plates 1251. The rollers 1252 can roll along the inner wall of the slot 611. The rolling of the rollers 1252 and the inner wall of the slot 611 replaces the original sliding, which reduces the resistance to the movement of the first slider 12 to a certain extent and improves the smoothness.

[0079] like Figure 5 As shown, in order to further increase the stability of the lead screw 63 when rotating and to achieve precise, efficient and reliable linear transmission, bearings 631 are installed at both ends of the lead screw 63, and the bearing 631 closer to the drive component 62 is embedded and fixed in the housing of the drive component 62.

[0080] In order to limit the travel of the first slider 12 on the lead screw 63, a baffle 64 is provided at the end of the first slide groove 61 away from the drive member 62. The first slider 12 stops moving when it moves to the position of the baffle 64. A groove (not shown in the figure) is opened on the side of the baffle 64 that is connected to the first slide groove 61. The bearing 631 at the other end of the lead screw 63 is fixedly installed in the groove of the baffle 64.

[0081] To ensure the normal operation of the underwater tow body 10, a load compartment 13 is provided inside the shell 11. The load compartment 13 mainly installs power equipment and signal relay equipment, which are used for the relay transmission of power and signal systems between the surface tow vessel 30 and the underwater tow body 10 (in this embodiment, it is a detection tow body).

[0082] like Figure 6 As shown, the payload compartment 13 contains a power supply 131, an attitude sensor 132, a counterweight 133, and a main control unit 134. The power supply 131 provides power and can adjust the power supply to transmit power from the towing vessel 30 to the underwater tow body 10. The attitude sensor 132 is used to monitor the real-time pitch angle data of the underwater tow body 10. The counterweight 133 is made of high-density metal material to increase the gravity of the underwater tow body 10 and maintain its diving depth and stability. The main control unit 134 receives the real-time pitch angle data of the underwater tow body 10 monitored by the attitude sensor 132, compares and analyzes the data, and transmits instructions to the drive unit 62 to adjust the position of the first slider 12, thereby achieving attitude and depth control of the underwater tow body 10. The main control unit 134 is connected to the host computer at the end of the vessel via the first-stage towing cable 20.

[0083] like Figure 7 As shown, the specific process of attitude adjustment of the underwater towed body 10 is as follows: After the underwater towed body 10 is lowered and runs stably, the host computer at the ship end sends a navigation pitch angle setting command to the main control unit 134. The main control unit 134 uses the set pitch angle as a reference to analyze and compare the real-time pitch angle transmitted by the attitude sensor 132.

[0084] When the main control unit 134 determines that the real-time pitch angle of the underwater tow body 10 is greater than the set pitch angle, it starts the drive unit to rotate forward, and the drive screw 63 also rotates forward, causing the first slider 12 to move towards the stern end of the housing 11. Since the first-stage towing cable 20 always pulls the first slider 12, the first slider 12 moves towards the stern end of the housing 11, the connection point between the first-stage towing cable 20 and the housing 11 moves backward, and the stern end of the underwater tow body 10 is lifted so that the underwater tow body 10 is maintained within the set pitch angle range.

[0085] When the main control unit 134 determines that the real-time pitch angle of the underwater tow body 10 is less than the set pitch angle, it starts the drive unit to reverse, and the drive screw 63 also rotates in the opposite direction, causing the first slider 12 to move towards the bow end of the housing 11, that is, to move away from the stern end. Since the first-stage towing cable 20 always pulls the first slider 12, the first slider 12 moves towards the bow end of the housing 11, the connection point between the first-stage towing cable 20 and the housing 11 moves forward, the bow end of the underwater tow body 10 will rise, and the stern end will fall, so that the underwater tow body 10 is maintained within the set pitch angle range.

[0086] The pitch angle of the underwater tow body 10 is adjusted by adjusting the relative position of the first slider 12 on the shell, thereby effectively filtering out small fluctuations caused by the vibration of the first-stage tow cable and the underwater tow body 10 itself. It can also play a good role in damping the pitch fluctuations of the towed vessel and the large-scale disturbances of the water flow, so that the underwater tow body 10 can maintain the set attitude.

[0087] Example 2

[0088] This invention also provides another type of vibration-damping and stabilizing underwater tow body, such as... Figure 8 As shown, the underwater tow body 10 is a fixed-depth tow body of a two-stage towing system; the tow vessel 30 is connected to the underwater tow body 10 via a primary towing cable 20, and the underwater tow body 10 is connected to the detection tow body 40 via a secondary towing cable 50.

[0089] During navigation, the towing vessel 30 serves as the power source, providing propulsion for the system. At the same time, the towing vessel 30 is equipped with a host computer for communication, control, and data processing of the underwater towing body 10 and the detection towing body 40. The primary towing cable 20 and the secondary towing cable 50 are optical fiber composite cables, which have the functions of traction and signal transmission.

[0090] When the probe tow body 40 is navigating at a fixed depth underwater, it is necessary to ensure that its attitude and depth remain stable and are not affected by the fluctuations of the tow vessel 30 and the primary tow cable 20. This requires that the connection point of the secondary tow cable 50 on the underwater tow body 10 maintains a constant depth. In order to mitigate the influence of the tow vessel 30 and the primary tow cable 20 on the attitude of the probe tow body 40, this embodiment provides an underwater tow body structure.

[0091] The underwater tow body in this embodiment includes a shell 11, a first slider 12 disposed on the upper surface of the shell 11, and a second slider 14 disposed at the stern end of the shell 11. The first slider 12, as the sling point between the primary tow cable 20 and the underwater tow body 10, can move back and forth along the length of the shell 11. The tow bar 30 pulls the primary tow cable 20, and the attitude of the underwater tow body changes accordingly. The second slider 14, as the connection point between the secondary tow cable 50 and the underwater tow body 10, can move back and forth vertically at the stern end of the shell 11. Figure 9 As shown.

[0092] When the depth of the underwater towed body 10 exceeds a fixed depth, the first slider 12 moves towards the stern end of the shell 11, that is, the lifting point moves towards the stern end. The first-stage towing cable 20 pulls the first slider 12 to lift the stern end of the shell 11, slowing down the increase in the depth of the stern end of the underwater towed body 10. In order to keep the depth of the detection towed body 40 connected to the second slider 14 via the second-stage towing cable 50 stable, after the stern end is lifted, the second slider 14 should maintain its original depth under the action of inertial force, so that the attitude and depth of the detection towed body 40 connected to the second-stage towing cable 50 can remain unchanged. That is, when the stern end is lifted, the second slider 14 remains stationary to maintain its original depth, and the stern end moves upward relative to the second slider. This keeps the depth of the detection towed body 40 connected to the second-stage towing cable 50 unchanged and can resist the change in attitude or depth of the detection towed body 40 caused by the fluctuation of the second-stage towing cable 50 due to the depth fluctuation of the underwater towed body.

[0093] When the depth of the underwater towed body 10 is less than a fixed depth, the first slider 12 moves towards the bow end of the hull 11. The first-stage tow cable 20 pulls the first slider 12 to raise the bow end of the hull 11 and lower the stern end, thus slowing down the decrease in the depth of the stern end of the underwater towed body 10. Similarly, in order to keep the depth of the detection towed body 40 stable, after the stern end is lowered, the second slider 14 should maintain its original depth under the action of inertial force so that the attitude and depth of the detection towed body 40 connected by the second-stage tow cable 50 can remain unchanged. That is, when the stern end is lowered, the second slider 14 remains stationary to maintain its original depth, and the stern end moves downward relative to the second slider. This keeps the depth of the detection towed body 40 connected by the second-stage tow cable 50 constant and can resist the changes in attitude or depth of the detection towed body 40 caused by the fluctuation of the second-stage tow cable 50 due to the depth fluctuation of the underwater towed body.

[0094] It should be noted that in this embodiment, the first slider 12 has the same structure as the first slider in Embodiment 1, and the housing 11 is also a low-resistance rectifier housing. The upper surface of the housing 11 is also provided with a horizontal slide groove assembly 60 extending along its length direction. The structure of the horizontal slide groove assembly 60 is the same as that in Embodiment 1, and will not be described again here.

[0095] In this embodiment, the structure of the second slider 14 is as follows: Figure 10 As shown, the outer side of the second slider 14 is the second lifting part 141, and the second lifting part 141 has a second lifting hole 142. The inner side of the second slider 14 is the second sliding part 143, which has a cubic structure. The middle part of the second sliding part 143 has a second mounting through hole 144, and the inside of the second mounting through hole 144 has a smooth surface.

[0096] When the depth of the underwater tow body 10 changes, the first slider 12 moves along the lead screw 63, causing the stern end of the housing 11 to rise or fall. In order to keep the detection tow body 40 connected to the secondary tow cable 50 stable, the second slider 14 must also maintain its original depth. Therefore, the vertical slide assembly 70 is fixed at the stern end of the housing 11. During depth adjustment, only the vertical slide assembly 70 and the stern end of the housing 11 rise or fall synchronously, while the depth of the second slider 14 remains unchanged due to inertia. It can also be considered that the relative positional relationship between the second slider 14 and the stern end of the housing 11 in the vertical direction changes.

[0097] Specifically, the vertical slide rail assembly includes a second slide rail 71 and a guide rail 72 disposed within the second slide rail 71; such as Figure 9 As shown, the second slide groove 71 is vertically fixed to the stern end of the housing 11, and the opening direction of the second slide groove 71 is away from the housing 11; the guide rail 72 extends along the height direction of the second slide groove 71, and its two ends are fixed to the upper end and lower end of the second slide groove 71. The surface of the guide rail 72 is a smooth surface. The guide rail 72 passes vertically through the second mounting through hole 144 of the second slider 14. The second slider 14 and the guide rail 72 are slidably connected. When the guide rail 72 moves up and down, the second slider 14 does not move with the guide rail 72 and maintains its original depth position.

[0098] In this embodiment, the housing 11 also has a load compartment 13 inside, such as... Figure 11 As shown, the load compartment 13 mainly houses power transmission equipment and signal relay equipment, used for the relay transmission of power and signal systems between the surface towed vessel 30 and the underwater tow body 10 (a fixed-depth tow body in this embodiment). Its structure is also... Figure 6 As shown. The payload compartment 13 contains a power supply 131, a depth gauge 135, a counterweight 133, and a main control unit 134. The power supply 131 provides power and can adjust the power supply to relay the power supply from the towing vessel 30 to the probe tow body 40. The depth gauge 135 is used to monitor the real-time depth data of the underwater tow body 10. The counterweight 133 is made of high-density metal material to increase the gravity of the underwater tow body 10 and maintain its diving depth and stability. The main control unit 134 receives the real-time depth data of the underwater tow body 10 monitored by the depth gauge 135, performs comparative analysis on the data, and transmits instructions to the drive unit 62 to adjust the position of the first slider 12, thereby achieving attitude and depth control of the underwater tow body 10. The main control unit 134 is connected to the host computer at the ship end through the first-stage towing cable 20.

[0099] like Figure 12 As shown, the specific process of adjusting the depth of the underwater towing body 10 is as follows: After the secondary towing system is lowered and runs stably, the host computer at the ship end sends a navigation fixed depth command, i.e., a fixed depth parameter, to the main control unit 134. The main control unit 134 uses the fixed depth parameter as a reference to analyze and compare the real-time depth transmitted by the depth gauge 135.

[0100] When the main control unit 134 determines that the real-time depth of the underwater tow body 10 is greater than the fixed depth, it starts the drive component to rotate forward, and the drive screw 63 also rotates forward, causing the first slider 12 to move towards the stern end of the shell 11. As the towing vessel 30 continuously pulls the first-stage towing cable 20, the first slider 12 moves towards the stern end of the shell 11, and the connection point between the first-stage towing cable 20 and the shell 11 moves backward. The stern end of the underwater tow body 10 will be lifted to slow down the increase in the depth of the underwater tow body 10. The second slide 71 and the guide rail 72 are lifted synchronously with the stern end, and the second slider 14 remains stationary under the action of inertial force to maintain the original depth, so that the depth of the detection tow body 40 connected to the second-stage towing cable 50 remains unchanged, which can resist the change in attitude or depth of the detection tow body 40 caused by the fluctuation of the second-stage towing cable 50 due to the depth fluctuation of the underwater tow body.

[0101] When the main control unit 134 determines that the real-time depth of the underwater tow body 10 is less than the fixed depth, it starts the drive component to reverse, and the drive screw 63 also rotates in the opposite direction, causing the first slider 12 to move towards the bow end of the shell 11, that is, to move away from the stern end. As the towing vessel 30 continues to pull the first-stage towing cable 20, the first slider 12 moves towards the bow end of the shell 11, and the lifting point of the first-stage towing cable 20 and the shell 11 moves forward. The stern end of the underwater tow body 10 will be lowered, and the bow end will be raised to slow down the decrease in the depth of the underwater tow body 10. The second slide 71 and the guide rail 72 lower synchronously with the stern end, and the second slider 14 remains stationary under the action of inertial force to maintain the original depth, so that the depth of the detection tow body 40 connected by the second-stage towing cable 50 remains unchanged, which can resist the change in attitude or depth of the detection tow body 40 caused by the fluctuation of the second-stage towing cable 50 due to the depth fluctuation of the underwater tow body.

[0102] The attitude and depth of the underwater tow body 10 are adjusted by adjusting the relative position of the first slider 12 on the shell. The second slider 14 does not move with the stern of the shell and maintains the original depth. This effectively filters out small fluctuations caused by the vibration of the first-stage tow cable and the underwater tow body 10 itself. It can also play a good role in damping the pitching fluctuations of the towed vessel and the large-scale disturbances of the water flow.

[0103] In other embodiments, the structure of the second slider 14 is the same as that of the first slider 12, and the structure of the second slide groove 71 is the same as that of the first slide groove 61, thereby improving the load-bearing capacity of the second slider 14 in the lateral direction and preventing the secondary drag cable 50 from pulling the second slider 14 away from the second slide groove 71.

[0104] In other embodiments, the vertical slide rail assembly 70 has the same structure as the horizontal slide rail assembly 60 in Embodiment 1. The horizontal slide rail assembly 60 is installed on the upper surface of the housing 11, and the vertically placed horizontal slide rail assembly 60 is installed at the stern end. In this case, it is necessary to actively adjust the position of the second slider 14 at the stern end so that it moves up or down along the lead screw to maintain the original depth.

[0105] As can be seen from the above embodiments, the structure of the underwater towed body can be either a detection towed body that requires stable attitude in a first-stage towed system, or a fixed-depth towed body that requires stable depth in a second-stage towed system.

[0106] The first slider serves as the connection point between the underwater tow body and the first-stage tow cable. By adjusting the position of the first slider on the hull, it effectively filters out small fluctuations caused by the vibration of the first-stage tow cable and the underwater tow body itself. It also has a good damping effect on the pitching fluctuations of the towed vessel and large-scale disturbances of the water flow, which helps the underwater tow body maintain its attitude stability within the set pitch angle range.

[0107] The second slider, as the connection point between the underwater tow body and the secondary towing cable, can adapt to the adjustment of the underwater tow body's attitude caused by the movement of the first slider. This can greatly reduce the impact of the tow vessel's undulations with the waves on the underwater fixed-depth tow body and the detection tow body, ensuring that the detection tow body is not affected by the fixed-depth tow body and can perform detection tasks at a relatively stable depth.

[0108] The horizontal and vertical chute assemblies are simple, reliable, low-cost, and highly stable, making them well-suited for complex underwater navigation environments.

[0109] Finally, it should be noted that the various embodiments in this specification are described in a progressive manner, with each embodiment focusing on the differences from other embodiments. The same or similar parts between the various embodiments can be referred to each other.

[0110] The above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present invention and not to limit them; although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to preferred embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that modifications can still be made to the specific implementation of the present invention or equivalent substitutions can be made to some technical features without departing from the spirit of the technical solutions of the present invention, and all such modifications and substitutions should be covered within the scope of the technical solutions claimed in the present invention.

Claims

1. A vibration-damping and stabilizing underwater towed body, wherein the underwater towed body is connected to a towboat via a primary tow cable and to a detection towed body via a secondary tow cable, characterized in that, The underwater towed body includes: case, A first slider is disposed on the upper surface of the housing. The first slider moves back and forth along the length direction of the housing. The first slider is connected to the first-stage towing cable. The second slider is located at the stern end of the housing. The second slider moves in the vertical direction and is connected to the secondary towing cable. The upper surface of the housing is provided with a horizontal slide groove assembly extending along its length direction, and the first slider moves along the length direction of the horizontal slide groove assembly. The horizontal slide groove assembly includes: A first groove is formed on the upper surface of the housing, the first groove extends along the length direction of the housing, and the first slider is disposed in the first groove; A driving component is disposed at one end inside the first slide groove; A lead screw is disposed inside the first slide groove, the lead screw extends along the length of the first slide groove, and one end of the lead screw is connected to the drive component; The first slider is transversely mounted on the lead screw, and the lead screw is threadedly connected to the first slider. The driving component drives the lead screw to rotate, and the first slider moves linearly along the lead screw. A vertical sliding groove assembly is provided at the stern end of the housing. The second slider moves up and down along the height direction of the vertical sliding groove assembly. The vertical sliding groove assembly includes: The second slide groove is vertically fixed to the stern end of the housing, and the opening direction of the second slide groove is away from the housing; A guide rail extends along the height direction of the second slide groove, with both ends fixed to the second slide groove, and the surface of the guide rail is a smooth surface. The guide rail passes vertically through the second slider, and the guide rail and the second slider are slidably connected. The groove and the guide rail move synchronously with the stern end of the housing. The second slider maintains its original depth under the action of inertial force, and the guide rail and the second slider slide relative to each other. When the depth of the underwater towed body is greater than a fixed depth, the first slider moves towards the stern of the shell, so that the connection point between the first-stage tow cable and the underwater towed body moves towards the stern of the shell. The first-stage tow cable pulls the first slider to raise the stern of the shell, thereby slowing down the increase in the depth of the underwater towed body's stern. The second slider maintains its original depth under inertia, so that the second-stage tow cable keeps the depth of the detected towed body constant. When the depth of the underwater towed body is less than a fixed depth, the first slider moves towards the bow of the hull, so that the connection point between the first-stage tow cable and the underwater towed body moves towards the bow of the hull. The first-stage tow cable pulls the first slider to lower the stern of the hull, thereby slowing down the decrease in the depth of the stern of the underwater towed body. The second slider maintains its original depth under inertia, so that the second-stage tow cable keeps the depth of the detected towed body constant.

2. The vibration-damping and stabilizing underwater towed body according to claim 1, characterized in that, The width of the first groove is adapted to the width of the first slider. When the first slider moves, the two side walls of the first groove limit the first slider so that the first slider does not rotate synchronously with the lead screw.

3. The vibration-damping and stabilizing underwater towed body according to claim 1, characterized in that, The first slide groove has slots on both sides inside, and the slots extend along the length of the first slide groove. Sliding members extend outward in the horizontal direction from both sides of the first slider that contacts the first groove. The sliding members are placed in the slot to prevent the first-stage towing cable from pulling the first slider out of the first groove.

4. The vibration-damping and stabilizing underwater towed body according to claim 3, characterized in that, The sliding component includes two sliding plates arranged parallel to each other vertically. The distance between the two sliding plates is adapted to the height of the slot. A roller is provided between the two sliding plates and rolls along the inner wall of the slot.

5. The vibration-damping and stabilizing underwater towed body according to claim 1, characterized in that, The underwater towed body also includes a main control unit, an attitude sensor for monitoring the pitch angle of the underwater towed body or a depth gauge for monitoring the depth of the underwater towed body. The attitude sensor or the depth gauge is connected to the main control unit to send the monitored pitch angle or depth of the underwater towed body to the main control unit. The main control unit is connected to the host computer at the ship end through a primary tow cable. The main control unit is configured to: receive the real-time pitch angle of the underwater towed body sent by the attitude sensor; if the pitch angle is greater than a set pitch angle, activate the drive unit to drive the lead screw to rotate, so that the first slider moves towards the stern end of the hull; if the pitch angle is less than the set pitch angle, activate the drive unit to drive the lead screw to rotate in the opposite direction, so that the first slider moves towards the bow end of the hull. Alternatively, the system receives the real-time depth of the underwater towed body sent by the depth gauge and compares it with the fixed depth of the underwater towed body; if the real-time depth is greater than the fixed depth, the system activates the drive unit to drive the lead screw to rotate, causing the first slider to move towards the stern end of the hull; if the real-time depth is less than the fixed depth, the system activates the drive unit to drive the lead screw to rotate in the opposite direction, causing the first slider to move towards the bow end of the hull.

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