Page 10: of Marine Technology Magazine (April 2012)

10MTRApril 2012news Sonardyne created a new joint ven- ture company with the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI). The spinout company, called Lumasys, is to launch the first com- mercially available subsea optical communication system, BlueComm. The two organizations are working in collaboration to bring BlueComm to market. This wireless communica- tions technology is designed to enablesubsea data to be transferred at speeds equivalent to broadband. Optical communications can be used to provide ultra high data rates in typical deep water environments where there is little or no ambient light and turbidity is minimal. It is best suited to applications where sig- nificant user bandwidth is required or high levels of ambient noise preclude the use of traditional acoustic tech-nologies. This emerging technology uses highpower light emitting diodes as the transmitter with a receiver based on photomultiplier technology that is sosensitive it can detect light energy at the level of a few photons. BlueComm operates over short ranges of a few tens or even hundreds of meters with data transfer rates ofup to 10-to-20 megabits per secondto be achieved. It therefore provides an excellent complement to Sonardynes traditional long range but lower data rate acoustic commu- nications technologies.WHOI, Sonardyne Collaborate Grandweld Delivers to ADNOCGrandweld Shipyards has completed deliv- ery of Aradah, a 55m Dive andMaintenance Support Vessel (DMSV) built for ADNOC. The new state-of-the-art DMSV is the first from its class to be built by Grandweld Shipyards and will serve as the flagship to ADNOC offshore fleet operat- ing in the region. The vessel, equipped with 360 degree Schottel Rotatable Propulsion System, will serve dive and maintenance operations in Abu Dhabi off- shore fields. Additionally, Aradah is equipped with dynamic positioning, provid- ing the vessel with the capability to auto-matically maintain position without captainintervention. The vessel is also equippedwith a subsea lifting crane of 70 Ton @ 14m capacity positioned at the aft of thevessel, capable of handling DeadweightAnchors, Mooring Buoys and SBM hoses.The vessel is also equipped with two self-contained integrated diving systems com-plete with decompression chambers in order to facilitate under water diving oper- ations. AAE: Multiple USBL Orders for Japanese NavyThe Japan Maritime Self Defense Force (JMSDF) has awarded a major contract to Applied Acoustic Engineering (AAE) for thesupply of a number of USBL tracking sys-tems and associated equipment.Following sea trials in Japan and a com-petitive tender process, JMSDF took the decision to invest in seven of AAEs Alpha Portable systems, after witnessing and accepting the key criteria of tracking sta-bility, portability and ease of use. Predominantly intended for use with their naval search and rescue dive teams, JMSDF have also specified AAEs 210 Micro/Remote transponders as the ideal beacon to attach to its divers. LUMASYS: Seeking to Deliver Subsea Broadband Sonardyne International announced a collaboration with WHOI to launch BlueComm, the first commercially available subsea optical communica- tions system.