Multiple-ping High Resolution Minehunting Sonar for High Speed, Wide Area Searches

There is a requirement for a seafloor mapping system that will provide high resolution imagery in very shallow water when rigidly mounted to a 24 foot boat that is advancing at up to 10 knots. In this Phase I effort we propose to determine the feasibility of meeting this requirement with a prototype multiple-ping chirp side-scan sonar to operate at high frequencies and high ping rates, where multiple pings, each uniquely identified by their frequency sweep, are in the water simultaneously, thus providing both high cross track and transverse resolution at high sensor platform speeds. The high ping rate provides for the high transverse resolution while the wide bandwidth, calibrated, chirp pulse and matched filter correlation processing enables high cross track resolution in very shallow water. A multiple-ping high resolution minehunting sonar will significantly increase the efficiency of mine search operations as the ability to cover large areas at high speeds reduces the survey time. This increased efficiency is also expected to be attractive to commercial users as the technology will be a cost effective alternative to their exisiting systems.