Tethered Antennas for Unmanned Underwater Vehicles (UUVs)

When an AUV is underwater it cannot receive a GPS signal and it cannot communicate utilizing radio. This is a problem for users of AUVs. The ability to communicate rapidly and in real time, while still submerged could be very beneficial to many applications. A towed tethered antenna that will support two-way RF communication and GPS reception would greatly enhance the ID and localization capabilities of all AUVs. The immediate benefit to AUV users would be real time commands to the vehicle, which would allow mission changes “on the fly”. Accurate location of the vehicle while patrolling in smaller bodies of water and harbors will now be possible because of accurate GPS fixes.