Covert Sub-Surface Oceanographic Mooring Data Transmission
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional underwater oceanographic data transmission systems using surface buoys are vulnerable to vandalism and not suitable for surveillance applications, as they require continuous exposure and are not desirable for data recovery from underwater instruments.
Innovation Solution
A system and method that utilizes a submersible housing with a motorized payout-and-retrieval system and compressed gas protection to raise and lower a transmitter antenna from a submerged position to the water surface for data transmission, minimizing visibility and exposure, and employing dual pressure sensors for precise control and a braking device to manage depth and prevent retraction.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a surface buoy is used for data transmission, then data can be continuously transmitted, but the buoy is vulnerable to vandalism and visible for surveillance
Solution Approach 1:
The buoy system transitions from a static surface position to a dynamic submersible position. The buoy can be lowered below the surface when not transmitting data, changing its state between visible/transmitting and hidden/non-transmitting modes, thereby resolving the contradiction between continuous transmission and covert operation
Solution Approach 2:
The buoy performs periodic transmission cycles, surfacing briefly to transmit data packets and then submerging back below the surface. This periodic emergence allows data transmission while minimizing exposure time and visibility, reducing vulnerability to vandalism and surveillance
2Object-affected harmful factors
If the buoy remains submerged for covert operation, then visibility is reduced, but data transmission cannot occur
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements periodic transmission windows where the buoy surfaces briefly to transmit accumulated data packets, then returns to submerged covert operation. This allows the system to maintain low visibility while still performing necessary data transmission functions at scheduled intervals
Solution Approach 2:
An automated surface vessel acts as an intermediary, retrieving data from the submerged buoy via wireless communication and relaying it to remote destinations. This mediator enables data extraction without requiring the buoy to remain surfaced, maintaining covert operation while enabling information transfer
3Device complexity
If motor components are exposed to seawater, then the system is simpler, but corrosion and bio-fouling occur
Solution Approach 1:
Compressed air is used to create a protective atmosphere around motor components housed in a bellhousing structure. The air cushion prevents direct seawater contact with electrical components, eliminating corrosion and bio-fouling issues while maintaining system reliability during submerged operation
Solution Approach 2:
The bellhousing creates an inert air-filled environment around sensitive motor components, isolating them from the corrosive seawater environment. This protective atmosphere prevents galvanic corrosion and bio-fouling without requiring complex sealing mechanisms or sacrificial anodes
4Productivity
If the transmitter antenna is continuously exposed above water, then data transmission is continuous, but the system is visible and vulnerable
Solution Approach 1:
The transmitter antenna performs periodic emergence above the water surface to transmit data packets, then returns to a submerged state. This intermittent transmission pattern maintains productivity by regularly updating data while minimizing visibility and vulnerability exposure compared to continuous surface presence
Solution Approach 2:
Data collection continues continuously during submerged operation, with the buoy accumulating measurements from oceanographic instruments. The useful action of data gathering remains continuous even though transmission occurs periodically, maintaining productivity without requiring continuous antenna exposure
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables secure, efficient, and minimally visible data transmission from underwater instruments, reducing vandalism risks and maintaining the transmitter submerged for extended periods, while allowing for programmed or condition-based data transmission.
Implementation Method 1
a bellhousing having an open end and a sealed end, wherein the bellhousing is disposed within the chamber of the main vessel housing and configured to retain air in its sealed end
Implementation Method 2
compressed gas (e.g., air), automatically injected and managed within an open and contained space, to provide protection of motor components from seawater contact, bio-fouling, and galvanic corrosion
Implementation Method 3
compressed gas (e.g., air), automatically injected and managed within an open and contained space, to provide protection of motor components from seawater contact, bio-fouling, and galvanic corrosion, as well as to regulate buoyancy of the device
Implementation Method 4
dual pressure sensors, used to accurately control the device payout and retraction of jacketed wire rope or cable, using multiple pressure measurements, e.g., two simultaneously read measurements from different locations in the water column, correlating to depth within the water column
Implementation Method 5
a braking device used to slow a submersible housing or other object
Data Source
AI summary
A system and method for sending instrument data from a sub-surface activity, such as data collection by one or more sensors, to another location, e.g., a satellite, a ground-based location, a vessel, etc., with minimal time exposure and minimal visibility of any system components at the water surface. Exemplary embodiments include a motorized payout-and-retrieval system or device, an air injection device, and a water-level sensor with automation control that together can be used to move a vessel, connected to an antenna, from a position in the water column in which the antenna is below the surface to a higher position in which the antenna is at or above the surface for data transmission.