Analyzing Parabolic Profile Path for Underwater Towed-Cable

This article discusses the dynamic state analysis of underwater towed-cable when tow-ship changes its speed in a direction making parabolic profile path. A three-dimensional model of underwater towed system is studied. The established governing equations for the system have been solved using the central implicit finite-difference method. The obtained difference non-linear coupled equations are solved by Newton＇s method and satisfactory results were achieved. The solution of this problem has practical importance in the estimation of dynamic loading and motion, and hence it is directly applicable to the enhancement of safety and the effectiveness of the offshore activities.

Deghosting towed streamer data in τ/p domain based on rough sea surface reflectivity

Currently, the deghosting of towed streamer seismic data assumes a flat sea level and a sea-surface reflection coefficient of-1; this decreases the precision of deghosting. A new method that considers the rough sea surface is proposed to suppress ghost reflections. The proposed deghosting method obtains the rough sea surface reflection coefficient using Gaussian statistics, and calculates the optimized deghosting operator in the r/p domain. The proposed method is closer to the actual sea conditions, offers an improved deghosting operator, removes the ghost reflections from marine towed seismic data, widens the bandwidth and restores the low-frequency information, and finally improves the signal-to- noise ratio and resolution of the seismic data.

Steady State Analysis of Towed Marine Cables

Efficient numerical schemes were presented for the steady state solutions of towed marine cables. For most of towed systems,the steady state problem can be resolved into two-point boundary-value problem,or initial value problem in some special cases where the initial values are available directly.A new technique was proposed and attempted to solve the two-point boundary-value problem rather than the conventional shooting method due to its algorithm complexity and low efficiency.First,the boundary conditions are transformed into a set of nonlinear governing equations about the initial values,then bisection method is employed to solve these nonlinear equations with the aid of 4th order Runge-Kutta method.In common sense,non-uniform (sheared) current is assumed,which varies in magnitude and direction with depth.The schemes are validated through the DE Zoysa's example,then several numerical examples are also presented to illustrate the numerical schemes.

Dynamic Analysis of Towed and Variable Length Cable Systems

Towed cable systems are frequently used in marine measurements where the length of the towed cable varies during launch and recovery. In this paper a novel method for modeling variable length cable systems is introduced based on the finite segment formulation. The variable length of the towed cable is described by changing the length of the segment near the towing point and by increasing or decreasing the number of the discrete segments of the cable. In this way, the elastic effects of the cable can be easily handled since geometry and material properties of each segment are kept constant. Experimental results show that the dynamic behavior of the towed cable is consistent between the model and the physical cable. Results show that the model provides numerical efficiency and simulation accuracy for the variable length towed system.

Dynamic Response Analysis of Towed Cable During Deployment/Retrieval

A numerical approach was developed to analyze the transient behavior of towed cable during ac- tively controlled deployment/retrieval (DR).The cable motion is described by the lumped parameter method, its corresponding boundary conditions are presented.In view of its varying length during DR,two auxiliary arguments are introduced to describe its continuous varying length and discrete number of nodes(equations), the length is determined by the pay out(or reel-in) rate,which is then used to determine the node number by a logic relation.For the discrete mathematical model of towed cable,an algorithm was developed to deal with the discrete governing equations.The simulation results indicate that the cable experiences more com- plex motions due to its varying length,and tension fluctuates seriously in the startup and ending stage of deployment/retrieval.The effect of towing ship's motion in waves on cable during deployment/retrieval is also considered via numerical simulation.

Acoustic multipath structure in direct zone of deep water and bearing estimation of tow ship noise of towed line array

In the towed line array sonar system,the tow ship noise is the main factor that affects the sonar performance.Conventional noise cancelling methods assume that the noise is towards the endfire direction of the array.An acoustic experiment employing a towed line array is conducted in the western Pacific Ocean,and a strange bearing-splitting phenomenon of the tow ship noise is observed in the array.The tow ship noise is split into multiple noise signals whose bearings are distributed between 10°and 90°deviating from the endfire direction.The multiple interferences increase the difficulty in recognizing the target for the sonar operator and noise cancellation.Therefore,making the mechanism clear and putting forward the tow ship noise splitting bearing estimation method are imperative.In this paper,the acoustic multi-path structure of the tow ship in deep water is analyzed.Then it is pointed out that the bearing-splitting phenomenon is caused by the main lobe of direct rays and bottom-reflected rays,as well as several side lobes of direct rays.Meanwhile,the indistinguishability between the elevation angle and the bearing angle due to the axial symmetry of a strict horizontal line array causes the bearing to deviate from the endfire direction.Based on the theory above,a method of estimating bearing of the tow ship noise in deep water is proposed.The theoretical analysis results accord with the experimental results,which helps to identify the target and provide correct initial bearing guidance for noise cancelation methods.

Numerical Simulation of Dynamic Response of Towed Systems

In this paper, the dynamic response of undersea -+towed systems is numerically simulated. A two body towed system is especially considered in detail. The factors influencing the heave of towed-bodies, such as the weight of the towed-body (in sea water), the length and the weight (in sea water) per unit length of the cable between towed-bodies and towing ship, are investigated in detail. Calculations show that the two-body towed system can greatly increases the stability of the towed system.

Analysis of the Dynamic System of Wave Glider with a Towed Body

Mobile observation platforms are widely used in oceanographic and marine resource exploration and other applications. Wave Glider is a mobile platform that can transform wave energy into locomotion power and overcome the bottleneck of low energy supply. Wave Glider has recently been applied to tow underwater sensors fulfilling observation tasks. In this paper, the dynamic system of Wave Glider with a towed body is studied by applying multibody mechanics, and the relevant motion conditions of the system are investigated. Dynamic models of Wave Glider with a towed body and tether are first developed individually and then integrated into a whole model. The numerical method is used to obtain the dynamic responses and assess performance of the towed body pulled by the submerged glider of Wave Glider. The effects of sea state, mass of the towed body, and length of the towed cable are investigated on the basis of simulation results. This work can be used for the design and analysis of Wave Glider-towed body systems.

Two-dimensional DOA estimation based on thin array towed by a small autonomous platform

The small autonomous platform with a thin line array is an important tool for underwater acoustic mobile surveillance.Generally,only one-dimensional(1-D)direction-of-arrival(DOA)of the source signal can be estimated using a thin towed line array.In this work,the two-dimensional(2-D)DOA estimation is achieved by the thin line array towed by a small autonomous platform due to its flexible maneuver.Two perpendicular tow paths are formed through the fast turning of this array.An L-shaped array is formed by the same towed array on these two tow paths at different times.Using the array on these two straight paths,two 1-D DOAs of the source signal are obtained respectively,and then the 2-D DOA based on the formed L-shaped array can be estimated.The effectiveness of proposed approach is verified by numerical simulations and its theoretical error is analyzed.

Study on the Configuration of Towed Flexible Cables

Based on the fundamental equation of flexible cable dynamics for a towed system, an easily solved mathematical model is set up in this paper by means of appropriate simplification. Several regular patterns of spatial motion of towed flexible cables in water are obtained through numerical simulation with the finite difference method, and then modification and verification by trial results at sea. A technical support is provided for the towing ship to maneuver properly when a flexible cable is towed. Furthermore, the relations between two towed flexible cables, which are towed simultaneously by a ship, are investigated. The results show that the ship towing two flexible cables is safe under the suggested arrangement of two winches for the towing system, and the coiling/uncoiling sequences of the cables as well as the suggested way of maneuvering.

Construction and experimental verification research of a magnetic detection system for submarine pipelines based on a two-part towed platform

With the acceleration of the investigation and development of marine resources,the detection and location of submarine pipelines have become a necessary part of modern marine engineering.Submarine pipelines are a typical weak magnetic anomaly target,and their magnetic anomaly detection can only be realized within a certain distance.At present,a towfish or an autonomous underwater vehicle(AUV)is mainly used as the platform to equip magnetometers close to the submarine pipelines for magnetic anomaly detection.However,the mother ship directly affects the towfish,thus causing control interference.The AUV cannot detect in real time,which affects the magnetic anomaly detection and creates problems regarding detection efficiency.Meanwhile,a two-part towed platform has convenient control,thus reducing the interference of the towed mother ship and real-time detection.If the platform can maintain constant altitude sailing through the controller,the data accuracy in the actual magnetic anomaly detection can be guaranteed.On the basis of a two-part towed platform,a magnetic detection system with constant altitude sailing ability for submarine pipelines was constructed in this study.In addition,experimental verification was conducted.The experimental verification research shows that the constant altitude sailing experiment of the two-part towed platform verifies that the platform has good constant altitude sailing ability in both a hydrostatic environment and the actual marine environment.Meanwhile,the offshore magnetic anomaly detection experiment of submarine pipelines verifies the stable measurement function of the magnetic field and the function of the system to detect magnetic anomaly of submarine pipelines.

Dynamic simulation of aerial towed decoy system based on tension recurrence algorithm

Dynamic model of aerial towed decoy system is established and simulations are performed to research the dynamic characteristics of the system. Firstly, Kinetic equations based on spinor are built, where the cable is discretized into a number of rigid segments while the decoy is modeled as a rigid body hinged on the cable. Then tension recurrence algorithm is developed to improve computational efficiency, which makes it possible to predict the dynamic response of aerial towed decoy system rapidly and accurately. Subsequently, the efficiency and validity of this algorithm are verified by comparison with Kane’s function and further validated by wind tunnel tests.Simulation results indicate that the distance between the towing point and the decoy’s center of gravity is suggested to be 5%–20% of the length of decoy body to ensure the stability of system.In up-risen maneuver process, the value of angular velocity is recommended to be less than0.10 rad/s to protect the cable from the aircraft exhaust jet. During the turning movement of aircraft, the cable’s extent of stretching outwards is proportional to the aircraft’s angular velocity.Meanwhile, the decoy, aircraft and missile form a triangle, which promotes the decoy’s performance.

Dynamic Effect Research of Cable-Lead-In Rod on Towed System

This paper aims to research the cable-lead-in rod effect on a towed system through mathematical modeling and numerical simulations.The rod dynamics,as a key part of this study,is modeled using the combination of cable node governing equations and kinematic constraint conditions.As the first attempt to analyze such a problem,the rod is simply treated as an elastic cable segment so as to be incorporated into the dynamics of the cable,and a set of algorithm is then proposed based on the kinematic constraint conditions to fully describe its motions.Meanwhile,the cable and the underwater vehicle are modeled by the traditional lumped mass method and the 6 degree-of-freedom maneuverability equations for submarines respectively;the coupling boundary conditions besides the rod dynamics are also given to form the whole system's model.Several numerical cases are performed to investigate the rod effect on the system in different maneuver situations.Some meaningful conclusions are drawn through comparative analysis.

Dynamic response of towed line array

Three-dimensional motion equations with consideration of the bending and torsional effects of a marine towed cable system under large elastic deformation conditions are formulated using the lumped parameter model. The lumped mass model is used to simulate a circular maneuver of a towed horizontal array that was first presented by Ablow. The results of this paper are in a good agreement with those obtained by finite difference schemes, and the minimum depth is closer to the experimental result. Although the calculations take more computation time, the lumped mass model is a good method, which can also be used to solve problems of towed line array, especially multi-branched towed line array, because of its flexibility.

Matched field noise suppression: Principle with application to towed hydrophone line array

Discrete noise source suppression in underwa-ter acoustic channel has attracted great attention in recent years. The paper proposes a new principle for dealing with the problem. This new principle is called matched field noise suppression (MFNS). Based on a previous work of the au-thors group, a full understanding about how a discrete noise source shows effects on the performance of a towed hydro-phone line array has been obtained. In light of that finding, MFNS is proposed, which explores and utilizes the charac-teristics of the noise transmission channel to achieve much greater suppression of the noise in comparison with existing approaches. MFNS combines the concept of matched field processing (MFP) and optimal sensor array processing (OSAP) together to suppress the discrete noise source and to maintain an optimal beam for receiving far-field wanted plane wave signals. A MFNS beam-former is deduced in constraint with signal plane-wave response being unit and noise matched field response being zero. A closed-form solution of the weight vec-tor for the beam-former is given. Computer simulation results agree well to the theoretical analysis.

Receiving response of towed line array to the noise of the tow ship in shallow water

The receiving response of towed line array to the noise radiated from the tow ship is investigated through normal mode modeling and computer simulation. The phenomenon that the maximum output of the towed line array is away from the endfire direction towards the tow ship is explained. The result is important for the understanding of the phenomenon and also for the application research concerning the suppression of the noise from the tow ship as well as adequate application of towed array techniques in shallow water.

FLOW NOISE MEASUREMENT OF SURFACE SHIP WITH TOWED MODEL

In this article, a new acoustic test technique using towed model was introduced to study flow noise caused by a surface ship. The project of model test was be properly designed for acoustic signal collecting and with the help of appropriate data processing method different kinds of acoustic sources could be successfully identified. A lot of work about fuid noise could be carried on with the towed model, and the noise corresponding to low frequency which is especially interested for its long distance radiating with small attenuation could also be studied in this way.

Towed line array sonar platform noise suppression based on spatial matrix filtering technology

The spatial matrix filter was designed and used for solving the problem to detect a weak target who was influenced by the strong nearby platform noise interference of the towed line array sonar. The MFP technology and the DOA estimation technology were combined together by using the sound propagation characteristics of both target and interference. The spatial matrix filter with platform noise zero response constraint was designed by the near-field platform noise normal modes copy vectors and the far-field plane wave bearing vectors together. The optimal solution of the optimization problem for designing the spatial matrix filter was deduced directly, and it was simplified by the generalized singular value decomposition. The total response error to the plane wave bearing vectors and the total response to the platform noise copy vectors were given. The phenomena that strong interferences existed in the bearing course and blind areas existed after filtering were analyzed by the correlation between the plat- form noise copy vectors and the plane wave bearing vectors. It could be found from simulations that it has less blind area and higher detection ability by using the spatial matrix filtering technology.

Study of the Lift Force Induced by An Interceptor on A High-Speed Mono-Hull:The Affecting Factors and Estimation Formula

To find a better way to estimate the lift force induced by an interceptor on a high-speed mono-hull ship,a series of high-speed mono-hull ship models are designed and investigated under different conditions.Different lift forces are obtained by numerical calculations and validated by a model test in a towing tank.The factors that influence the force are the interceptor height,velocity,draft,and deadrise angle.The relationship between each factor and the induced lift force is investigated and obtained.We found that the induced lift mainly depends on the interceptor height and advancing velocity,and is proportional to the square of the interceptor height and velocity.The results also showed that the effects of the draft and deadrise angle are relatively less important,and the relationship between the induced lift and these two factors is generally linear.Based on the results,a formula including the combined effect of all factors used to estimate the lift force induced by the interceptor is developed based on systematic analysis.The proposed formula could be used to estimate the lift force induced by interceptors,especially under high-speed condition.

Experimental Study on Towing Characteristics of Composite Bucket Wellhead Platform

With the rapid development of large-scale development of marginal oilfields in China,simple wellhead platforms that are simple in structure and easy to install have become an inevitable choice in the process of oilfield development.However,traditional simple wellhead platforms are often discarded after a single use.In pursuit of a more costeffective approach to developing marginal oilfields,this paper proposes a new offshore oil field development facility—an integrated bucket foundation for wellhead platform.To verify the safety of its towing behavior and obtain the dynamic response characteristics of the structure,this paper takes a bucket integrated bucket foundation for wellhead platform with a diameter of 40 m as the research object.By combining physical model tests and numerical simulations,it analyzes the static stability and dynamic response characteristics of the structure during towing,complete with the effects of the draft,wave height,wave period,and towing point height,which produce the dynamic responses of the structure under different influence factors,such as roll angle,pitch angle,heave acceleration and towing force as well as the sensibility to transport variables.The results show that the integrated bucket foundation for wellhead platform is capable of self-floating towing,and its movement is affected by the local environment,which will provide a reference for actual projects.