Marine Sonic Technology

Marine Sonic Technology designs and supplies high resolution sonar imaging systems, working in towed and embedded CHIRP side scan sonar and synthetic aperture sonar. Its site describes the company's journey from a humble family owned company to an international subsidiary of TKMS ATLAS North America, and it now trades under the TKMS Marine Sonic name, operating from Yorktown, Virginia in the United States. Frequency selections across the range run from 150kHz all the way to 1800kHz. The towed line begins with the ARC Explorer MKII, the newest generation of Marine Sonic's towed side scan sonar for search, survey and recovery applications. Its Adaptive CHIRP Technology is said to support ranges up to 60 percent greater than non-Adaptive CHIRP systems, and it combines high resolution imaging with simultaneous dual frequency operation, an adjustable tow point and a variable transducer angle. It is rated to 300 m depth, ruggedly built and one-man portable, which the company positions for survey and infrastructure inspection work as well as for the search and recovery and security communities. The SeaScan Hunter, part of what the company also calls the ARC Hunter Product Line of Heavy-Duty Towed Systems, is aimed at deep-water survey. Its low frequency Adaptive CHIRP Technology is credited with ranges beyond 500 meters per side and reaching at least 1000m in swath under real-world conditions. Two products target unmanned platforms. The ARC Scout MKII is the embedded side scan sonar for Autonomous Underwater Vehicles and Remotely Operated Vehicles, designed to increase Area Coverage Rate and reduce survey time, with selectable Range and Range Delay settings per frequency so an operator can push high resolution at one frequency without losing the range extents of the low frequency channels. The SeaScan Ranger is a Synthetic Aperture Sonar for small AUVs, described as the smallest SAS in the market and consuming less than half the power of conventional SAS systems, delivering a constant 5 cm by 5 cm resolution at ranges of 150 meters per side with modular offline and online processing options. A Side Scan Sonar Accessories section is under construction, intended to list depressor wings, keel weights, SeaGear winch systems, cable, ruggedized laptops and spare or replacement parts. Training is a visible part of the business. The company runs two-day basic side scan sonar courses hosted by police marine units, fire departments and county emergency management agencies, and attends search and rescue conferences run by fire departments and training organisations. It also publishes instructional material on a YouTube channel where its subject matter experts teach viewers how to use their side scan sonar, aimed at both newcomers and operators refreshing existing skills.