초록 ▼

A method for determining the position of an underwater device includes placement of a plurality of station keeping devices on or below the surface of the water in known positions. A device to locate is provided for placement below the surface of the water, and the device to locate and the station ke

A method for determining the position of an underwater device includes placement of a plurality of station keeping devices on or below the surface of the water in known positions. A device to locate is provided for placement below the surface of the water, and the device to locate and the station keeping devices are provided with a synchronized time base and a common acoustic pulse time schedule. Each station keeping device sends an acoustic pulse at a time according to the common acoustic pulse schedule. The device to locate receives pulses sent by the station keeping devices and calculates a distance between itself and each station keeping device based upon the time that the acoustic pulse is sent and the time that the pulse is received. The device to locate then calculates its position based upon the distances between the device to locate and the station keeping devices.

대표청구항 ▼

What is claimed is: 1. A system for determining the position of an underwater device to locate, comprising:a plurality of station keeping devices on or below the surface of the water, each station keeping device having:a means for determining its position,a means for keeping time,a means for generat

What is claimed is: 1. A system for determining the position of an underwater device to locate, comprising:a plurality of station keeping devices on or below the surface of the water, each station keeping device having:a means for determining its position,a means for keeping time,a means for generating acoustic signals in the water,a memory for storing an acoustic signal schedule, anda processor in communication with the memory and the means for generating acoustic signals in the water according to the acoustic signal schedule;at least one device to locate, the device to locate havinga means for keeping time,a memory for storing the acoustic signal schedule and a known position for each station keeping device,an acoustic transducer for receiving acoustic signals sent by the station keeping devices, anda processor configured to calculate the position of the device to locate underneath the water based upon the difference between the arrival time of the acoustic signals and the scheduled time for sending the acoustic signals;wherein each means for keeping time is synchronized, and each memory stores the same acoustic signal schedule.