Retractable UUV Antenna Buoy with Smart Tether GPS

The primary purpose of the KCF Technologies Retractable UUV Antenna Buoy with Smart Tether GPS is to allow RF communication and GPS position update for a UUV without surfacing the vehicle. This can be done periodically by alternately surfacing and retracting the antenna, or the antenna can remain deployed while the UUV is operating, allowing constant communication during an operation. An additional benefit is the inclusion of the KCF’s Smart Tether technology, which uses orientation sensors embedded in the antenna tether to perform an accurate shape calculation of the tether, thereby allowing a position correction to eliminate watch-circle error. Thus, when the antenna is deployed, the UUV position can be determined more accurately than is possible with GPS alone. The SBIR funding will be used to refine the design of the prototype fabricated during Phase I for 21” UUVs and to develop a compact design to be used in smaller UUVs. The SBIR funding will also be used to fabricate a fully-integrated prototype to be installed in a production UUV and demonstrated in a relevant environment.