Award for 3D forward sounder
High-resolution demonstration image on the Echopilot 3D FLS
At Mercator Media’s Seawork 2010 exhibition, the winner of the Spirit of Innovation award as well as the award for underwater technology was UK company Echopilot, for the latest version of its forward looking sounder.
The Echopilot 3D Forward Sounder displays a three-dimensional representation of the underwater scene ahead of the vessel. The seabed terrain and contours, and any potential hazards, are shown realistically. The company emphasises that this is an actual sonar image, not chart data rendered in 3D. Twin transducers provide full forward coverage up to 200m ahead, 60° in the horizontal plane and 90° in the vertical plane.
Output is in a range of different formats, to provide a full-colour high resolution picture on several compatible displays.
Although the unit, like its predecessor that showed a flat forward view of the sea bed (and also won a Seawork award), is aimed primarily at the smaller vessel market, Echopilot told us that at least one major tanker company has expressed considerable interest, and type-approved transducers are available to allow use of the unit on SOLAS vessels. One particular claimed advantage is cost, which Echopilot says is considerably less than similar products with lower functionality.
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