Underwater tracking and communications system

Mini-Ranger 2 is Sonardyne’s mid-level Ultra-Short Baseline (USBL) target tracking system that’s also able to support data USV harvesting from seabed-deployed instruments or communicating with underwater assets such as AUVs.

With a 995 m operating range, extendable to 4,000 m, Mini-Ranger 2 can track up to 10 underwater targets simultaneously, including divers, towed instruments, ROVs and AUVs.

Mini-Ranger 2 is a compact, easily installed system ideal for temporary installation on small survey vessels and USVs. It is built around the same market-leading 6G hardware and Wideband 2 digital acoustic technology and software found in the entire Sonardyne family of USBL systems.

The system incorporates HPT 3000, a surface-deployed USBL transceiver optimized for performance in shallow water, high elevation and long lay back operating scenarios, as well as data telemetry. It is typically deployed over the side of a vessel on a pole arrangement or under the hull of a USV. HPT 3000 is connected to the system’s 1U-high Ethernet Serial Hub (ESH) and a PC running the Ranger 2 software application. Fit a transponder to each target you want to track and it is mission-ready.

A wide range of Sonardyne 6G transponders can be used with Mini-Ranger 2, allowing users to select the most appropriate model for each task.

Mini-Ranger 2 is simple to configure and easy to use, even if you have no prior experience of acoustic tracking technology.

Key features:

• Performance without the cost and complexity of a deep water USBL solution
• Expected system accuracy is 1.3% of slant range
• Designed for nearshore naval operations; UXO surveys, search and recovery, structure inspection
• Portable and quick to mobilize
• Optional Marine Robotics software feature pack provides command and control of AUVs
• Works with a wide range of 6G transponders including RT 6 acoustic releases