Long-term field validation and software integration for the SonarPoint underwater acoustic recording system
Abstract
SonarPoint is a low-cost, portable autonomous passive acoustic recording system that is time-synchronized to allow localization of sound sources such as marine mammal vocalizations. The system consists of modular plug-and-play components that allows for a variety of configurations. With ONR support, this system was recently developed, but only validated and field tested with a series of very short-term (a few hours to 24 hours) field deployments in the San Juan Islands and Monterey Bay. Field tests are still needed to validate the reliability of the system for use in long-term deployments (e.g., weeks to months), especially for the seafloor array configuration. We propose to conduct long-term field deployments of SonarPoint to test its reliability, ruggedness, and to identify and correct issues that might occur only during extended periods of deployment or intensive use. We also will integrate and improve the software used for post-processing and analysis, including providing easy -to-use GUI s where needed. The purpose of the effort is to establish and demonstrate a high level of technological readiness based on long-endurance field testing, and thus minimize the potential technological issues arising when SonarPoint is used for research and monitoring. Under Desert Star s Technological Readiness Level (TRL) system, the tests will advance SonarPoint from the beta test stage to the COTS state. Under the DoD TRL system SonarPoint is at the threshold between TRL 7 and 8 as a field tested prototype, and after we conduct the long-term test it will advance to between TRL 8 and 9. At this TRL level, the rish for subsequent operations, in particular for the seafloor array configuration and for extended mission durations, will be much reduced. The proposed test series consists of six deployments, of an array of up to five SonarPoint recorders. Each recorded will be mounted on a seafloor mooring, also including a sacrificial weight (sand bag), and acoustic release for recovery, a hard float and an Argos beacon to provide notification if a mooring string breaks loose. The arrray uses acoustic time synchronization, and a synchronizing pinger will be co-located with one of the recorder moorings. Initial deployments will be about one week, progressing to durations of several months as the system reliability is established. The recorder array and collected data is inspected after each deployment. Any flaws such as recording failures or dropouts are diagnosed and corrected. The cumulative deployment duration goal is one year. The test sites are in Monterey Bay, which is close to Desert Star headquarters and provides easy to access to both shallow and deep-water environments where a diversity of marine mammal species are present. A variety of underwater environments are available in Monterey Bay, ranging from shallow sandy bottom surf zones and gradual shallow water slopes, to deep submarine canyons. In shallow water areas, diving on submerged equipment for inspection purposes is possible. Three boat ramps within a 20 minute drive of Desert Star s offices allow for cost effective open water testing of the system, while also providing access to many options of coastal and offshore environments. Upon completion of this effort, the SonarPoint system will be made commercially available to users as a fully tested and field validated system that is low-cost, easy to deploy, retrieve, and finally, to easily post-process and analyze data collected.
Document Details
- Document Type
- DoD Grant Award
- Publication Date
- Sep 04, 2018
- Source ID
- N000141812818
Entities
People
- Marco Flagg
Organizations
- Office of Naval Research
- United States Navy