An Active Towed Body System Development

As part of development of a general-purpose, towed-vehicle system, a "Batfish" body has been expanded, tow tested and the system mathematically modelled for predictability. As a demonstration of the capability of the system, a pumped sampling system was installed and flown in the vehicle utilizing a novel high pressure pump that delivered 9 litres per minute through the faired cable. On-board sensors monitored depth and vehicle status as the body undulated between the surface and 55 m with a 0.7 km cycle at 10 kts. towing speed.