(New Bedford, MA USA – October 12, 2009): Brooke Ocean Technology USA has been selected to perform a phase one study for the Office of Naval Research (ONR). The topic is SBIR N08-194, “Tethered antennas for unmanned underwater vehicles”. This phase one study will analyze all the components required to produce a successful towed antenna system. BOT will investigate a new innovative reeling device for the tiny tow cable, and design a flying buoyant towbody to house the GPS antenna and the WiFi antennae for real time communications.

When an unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) is underwater, it cannot receive a GPS signal and it cannot communicate utilizing radio. This is a problem for all users of UUVs. The ability to communicate rapidly and in real time while still submerged could be very beneficial to many applications, the Terminal Swimmer Detection and Targeting (TSDT) Future Naval Capability (FNC) application in particular. A tethered antenna that will support two-way RF communication and GPS reception would greatly enhance the ID and localization capabilities of all UUVs. The added advantage is the UUV with a towed antenna will be much more maneuverable underwater in 3 or 5 m than it would be on the surface. In addition, successful creation of a universal towed antenna will be of great interest to the ever-growing number of users of autonomous vehicles around the world.

Brooke Ocean Technology USA is located in New Bedford, MA and is a subsidiary of ODIM ASA (www.odim.com). BOT USA has designed launch/recovery systems for various payloads including unmanned vehicles, tow bodies and oceanographic systems. BOT USA has a product line of different size BOT WINGS, towed depressors that can be configured to accommodate a variety of oceanographic sensors.