Page 58: of Marine Technology Magazine (November 2013)

Products Vectron Measures Tide Speeds The Fundy Ocean Research Center for Energy (FORCE), in partnership with Nortek ScientiÞ c, announced the construction of what is touted as the worldÕs Þ rst instrument to provide high-resolution, real time measurements of turbulent water ß ow at turbine hub height, called the Vectron. Vectron is designed to capture accurate measurements of turbulence at a speciÞ c height above the sea over long periods of time, beneÞ cial to understanding turbine performance. The FORCE test site in the Bay of Fundy, Nova Scotia, offers unique challenges and opportunities: the tidal ß ow boasts 14 billion metric tons of water moving at speeds in excess of Þ ve meters per second. ÒThe Vectron represents a signiÞ cant international achievement in science, engineering and collaboration Ð the Þ rst con- tinual, reliable measurement of turbulence through the water column,Ó said Eric Siegel, Innovation Director for Nortek Sci- entiÞ c. Vectron will be deployed on FORCEÕs Fundy Advanced Sensor Technology (FAST) platform. The FAST platform is a recoverable instrument platform designed to monitor and characterize the FORCE site. Using a variety of onboard sensing equipment, the platform enables operation and testing of multiple underwater sensing instruments; new instrument improve- ments for success in high ß ow environments; new Canadian expertise in site characterization, instrumentation and deploy- ment methods; and new standards for high-ß ow monitoring Ð a Òblack boxÓ prototype for all tidal turbines. www.fundyforce.ca SeaLite Sphere LED LightThe SeaLite Sphere has evolved to offer Þ eld-serviceable connector re- placement for a quick and easy re-pair in the Þ eld. The SeaLite Sphere advances beyond other LED lights by separating the connector from other internal electronic components to avoid downtime and costly repairs due to connector failures. The 8,700 psi pressure resistant compartment sepa-rates the connector and the rest of the light; which will make ß ooding due to a connector failure a thing of the past. www.deepsea.com Kraken Debuts Kraken Debuts AquaPix MINSAS AquaPix MINSAS Kraken Sonar Systems Inc. announced the development of AquaPix MINSAS, a next generation Miniature Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Sonar designed for operation to depths of 3,000m. The system integrates the latest electronics, transducer arrays and signal processing software and is optimized for the de- manding size, weight, power and cost constraints of Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUV), Unmanned Surface Vehicles (USV) and high speed towÞ sh platforms.MINSAS uses a subset of KrakenÕs award-winning AquaPix INSAS transducer array, but has the addition of an innovative SAS gap Þ ller transmitter that pro- duces high resolution data in the nadir region. A lower frequency transmit ele- ment, unique to MINSAS, provides a SAS resolution gap Þ ll directly under the platform. The transmitter and receiver elements are integrated into single mono- lithic arrays which are mounted close to the electronics module. The system also uses two rows of identical receiver elements to deliver precision bathymetry data. The system will be provided in two conÞ gurations. MINSAS 60 uses a trans- ducer array assembly that measures 60cm in length and is designed for AUVs with body diameters as small as 6 inches. MINSAS 120 uses a transducer ar- ray assembly that measures 120cm in length and is designed for larger AUVs as well as for high speed towÞ sh operations. Both systems produce ultra-high resolution, real-time image quality with unparalleled sharpness. Advanced 3D motion compensation and beamforming technologies nullify blurring caused by platform motion.www.krakensonar.com November/December 201358 MTRMTR #9 (50-64).indd 58MTR #9 (50-64).indd 5812/13/2013 12:29:14 PM12/13/2013 12:29:14 PM