Sippican, Inc.

Sonatech, Inc.

Mark C Manning

Raymond A Chace, Jr

John R Couture

Michael P Wapner

Michael J Balboni

Alan T Hudson

John E Mather

Patrick J Kelly

William D Pattee

Brian J Gallagher

Alf L Carroll, Iii

An expendable autonomous underwater vehicle is deployed from a trash disposal unit of a submarine into a body of water. The vehicle and one or more launch-aiding components are inserted into the trash disposal in an arrangement that results in safe and reliable deployment from the trash disposal unit. The launch-aiding components keep the vehicle in a predetermined orientation within the trash disposal unit prior to deployment and protect the trash disposal unit from damage. The launch-aiding components also aid the vehicle in ejecting from the trash disposal unit and descending into the body of water to a depth at which the vehicle can begin its autonomous operation. In general, the vehicle must be a safe distance away from the submarine before it begins operation. The launch-aiding components fall away from the vehicle in the body of water as the vehicle descends thereinto. The expendable autonomous underwater vehicle, which typically is used by submarine personnel as a training target, drops to the bottom of the body of water after its internal battery is exhausted.

Method and apparatus for deploying an expendable autonomous underwater

An expendable underwater vehicle for use in training naval forces in anti-submarine warfare in ocean waters, including shallow waters, is between about three to five feet in length and about five inches in diameter, and it includes various improvements which make successful operations in shallow ocean waters, and improved operation in all ocean waters, possible. The improvements include a one-piece nose cup which allows the expendable underwater vehicle to be air launched into shallow water, a scuttle plug which allows water to fill the expendable underwater vehicle after the vehicle is expended and drops to the bottom of the ocean, and rudders and elevators of increased surface area which improve controllability of the vehicle in the water.

Expendable underwater vehicle

An expendable underwater vehicle for use in training naval forces in anti-submarine warfare in ocean waters is between about three to five feet in length and about five inches in diameter, and it includes various improvements which make successful operation in the ocean waters possible. The improvements include an in-water variable speed feature, a variable tonal levels feature, an autonomous evasion feature, and a high-power integrated pinger feature. One or more of these features can be combined to provide an extremely effective and versatile expendable underwater training vehicle.

Growing community of inventors

Portsmouth, RI, United States of America

Mark C Manning