Design considerations and operational advantages of a modular AUV with synthetic aperture sonar

Synthetic aperture sonar (SAS) has numerous qualities that make it desirable for use in hydrographic survey, mine warfare, and other subsea survey applications. Improvements in power consumption and mechanical footprint, as well as decreased cost, have recently enabled SAS integration onto small- and medium-size AUVs, expanding the potential applications for SAS usage. However, SAS-AUV integration requires careful consideration of a number of factors. This paper provides an overview of SAS technology as well as the features and performance of the PROSAS Surveyor and the Bluefin-12 AUV, discusses the engineering challenges of combining the two systems, and describes the resulting operational advantages of the integrated system.