Station-Keeping Gateway Buoy

Gateway buoys are used to provide communications telemetry between remotely deployed undersea assets and surface or shore base command centers. These buoys are capable of transmitting information via acoustic modems, Iridium and Freewave RF. Previous versions of these buoys required battery power and needed to be moored. Operational effectiveness was limited. This proposal builds upon gateway buoy designs already completed for SPAWAR addressing the need for improvements. Dubbed "Gatekeepers," these buoys will address the requirements not found in today's designs including: an improved hydrodynamic shape to reduce power consumption for station-keeping and thereby extending useful life; alternative energy sources including solar, fuel cells and kinetic; propulsion-equipped to maintain station without mooring lines; improved overall design elements such as extended mission duration, obstacle avoidance, the addition of ACOMMs and a transducer winch system. FSI is proposing in Phase I to conduct a series of engineering investigations into the trade-offs of design to determine an optimal Gatekeeper system. FSI will build upon knowledge from its previous moored gateway buoys as well as its revolutionary Solar AUV. The Option to Phase I will deliver a completed design as well as estimated production costs for Phases II & III.