New Sonar May Help Avoid Collisions
A new sonar system has been developed by
Farsounder, Inc. that can be placed at the bows of ships
to detect objects in the water. What is special about this
device is that its range extends 45o to the left and to the
right of the ship, giving it a 90o total range. Devices
currently in use only have a range of 12o in front of the
ship and cannot distinguish between rocks they can steer
around and the ocean floor. This sonar will not detect
objects that are composed mainly of water, such as
jellyfish and algae, but a whale can be detected because
it has bones and lungs, which can reflect the sound waves
back to the ship. The new sonar works in waters up to 50
feet deep and water temperature changes will not affect
its efficiency. The Farsounder sonar can detect minesized
objects as far as 1000 feet away and has been
tested accurate at speeds up to 40 knots. At a very
reasonable price for the shipping industry, it also enables
the shipping industry to reduce the costs of routing time,
grounding delays, collision damage, fuel, and avoiding
icebergs and oil spills. The device is currently set to be
installed on the NOAA vessel Delaware II and more
contracts are pending. Hopefully, this type of sonar will
become more widely used in the near future! For more
information about Farsounder, Inc., visit their website at
www.farsounder.com.
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