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Kongsberg Maritime (KM) has announced the launch of the EM 712 USV, a new multibeam echosounder designed for use with Unmanned Surface Vehicles (USVs).
The latest addition to KM’s market-leading EM 712 family of shallow- to medium-water multibeam echosounders for seabed mapping applications, the EM 712 USV can be easily integrated with and operated from any USV. It features a subsea container housing redesigned electronics, which would normally be located on the topside of a standard EM 712. The container fits inside the same footprint as the transducers and can therefore be easily installed in a gondola, thereby reducing the number of cables protruding through the USV’s hull to a bare minimum.
The EM 712 USV is operated using KM’s Seafloor Information System (SIS) software, delivered via SIS Remote which enables users to remotely control the echosounder from an onsite location. SIS Remote can also be operated through KM’s Blue Insight platform, the company’s next-generation, cloud-based solution for securely collecting, storing and processing data received from a survey vessel. Operators have the option of easily controlling the amount of data transmitted to suit the available bandwidth.
The EM 712 USV is fully frequency-agile between 40 and 100 kHz, allowing for long-range and swath coverages by utilizing CW and FM chirp pulses, in combination with being a high-resolution sonar. It represents an ideal solution for platforms such as USVs which are subject to rapid movements as the swath coverage is fully stabilized for roll, pitch and yaw. This guarantees 100% coverage of the seabed even in harsh weather conditions.
“The new EM 712 USV is the outcome of a close collaboration between key customers, USV manufacturers and KM’s innovative product development team,” says Helge Uhlen, Vice President of Sales in Kongsberg Maritime. “Over the years, the EM 712 has become the standard for high-resolution mapping of the seabed, from the shoreline to coastal depths as far down as 3,500 meters. With such high resolution and the resulting provision of very clean data, together with features like remote operation, dual swath, sector transmission and normalized backscatter, this new addition to the EM 712 family will provide USV operators and users with an unparalleled tool for mapping the oceans.”
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