UAV Sonar Buoy with Foldable Wings and Rocket Launch
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current sonar buoy deployment methods are inefficient, as they often require manned vessels and result in one-time use devices that sink after deployment, limiting their operational flexibility and effectiveness.
Innovation Solution
An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) based sonar buoy system that includes a tube-like fuselage, foldable wings, an engine, a guidance computer, and a detachable rocket motor, allowing for launch from a surface vehicle and autonomous flight to a predetermined location, where it can function as active or passive sonar before potentially detaching and sinking or returning.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If sonar buoys are deployed from manned vessels, then deployment capability is achieved, but operational flexibility and response time are reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The sonar buoy is equipped with autonomous navigation capabilities including GPS reception, inertial navigation, and depth sensing, allowing it to self-navigate to predetermined coordinates without requiring continuous human intervention or manned vessel presence for deployment and operation
Solution Approach 2:
The system transitions from manual deployment parameters to automated navigation parameters by receiving GPS coordinates and autonomously adjusting its position, depth, and orientation to reach the target location, enabling rapid response to changing operational requirements
2Productivity
If sonar buoys are designed as one-time use devices that sink after deployment, then device complexity is reduced, but operational effectiveness and cost efficiency deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The sonar buoy incorporates dynamic state transitions with adjustable buoyancy control, allowing it to switch between submerged operational mode and surface recovery mode, transforming from a static one-time use device to a dynamic reusable system
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements a recoverable design where the sonar buoy returns to the launching vessel after completing its mission, enabling repeated use and reducing the need to continuously deploy new buoys, thereby improving cost efficiency and operational sustainability
3Speed
If sonar buoys are launched from tubes on surface vessels, then deployment speed is improved, but adaptability to remote locations is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The sonar buoy is designed as a multi-functional platform that combines rapid tube launch capability with autonomous flight capabilities, allowing it to be deployed from various platforms (surface vessels, aircraft, shore-based systems) and operate in diverse locations including remote areas beyond the reach of traditional vessel-based deployment
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 flexible, on-demand deployment of sonar buoys to remote locations, reducing operational costs and enhancing the ability to locate underwater objects like submarines with improved operational flexibility and reduced resource requirements.
Implementation Method 1
a rocket motor detachably coupled to the fuselage. The rocket motor propels the sonar buoy from the launch tube
Implementation Method 2
an engine coupled to the fuselage and operable to propel the sonar buoy through flight
Implementation Method 3
a sonar detachably coupled to the fuselage. Sonar buoys float in the sea and either listen for submarine noise (passive buoys) or transmit sonar pulses and then listen for the return (active buoys)
Data Source
AI summary
A sonar buoy includes a fuselage having a tube-like shape, one or more wings coupled to the fuselage, an engine coupled to the fuselage and operable to propel the sonar buoy through flight, and a guidance computer operable to direct the sonar buoy to a predetermined location. The sonar buoy further includes a sonar detachably coupled to the fuselage and forming at least a part of the fuselage, and a rocket motor detachably coupled to the fuselage. The one or more wings are operable to be folded into a position to allow the sonar buoy to be disposed within a launch tube coupled to a vehicle and to automatically deploy to an appropriate position for flight after the sonar buoy is launched from the launch tube. The rocket motor propels the sonar buoy from the launch tube and detaches from the fuselage after launch.