Compact, lightweight sensor handling system for unmanned vehicles

Underwater vehicles operating in littoral waters face formidable challenges – the shallow waters and relatively high currents present in these regions necessitate a compact vehicle with a considerable amount of internal space and energy devoted to propulsion. Many sensors operate best when somewhat removed from the main chassis of the UUV, necessitating a system by which to pay them out and reliably reel them back that uses a minimal amount of space and energy. Infoscitex’ proposed system utilizes a novel winding mechanism to keep the cable in as tight a configuration as possible while providing smooth handling for the sensors and preventing snags. Our system can be mounted almost anywhere in a vehicle, but most importantly it can be mounted between the propulsion and electronics modules, as commonly arranged in UUVs. Our cable encompasses both fiber optic and standard metal conduits for high data transfer rates and maximal power transfer, and is strong enough to adequately handle towed sensor arrays without requiring secondary cabling.