US3715577A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Underwater localization system
Assignee: Unisys Corp
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Filing: 1971-02-08
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Granted: 1973-02-06
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Expires: 1991-02-08
Abstract
Abstract An acoustical apparatus for divers including an underwater omnidirectional transmitter and a three-section receiver having two hydrophones and two earpieces mounted on head gear worn by each diver. Pulse signals from the transmitter are sensed by the hydrophones disposed in a signal conditioning section of the receiver and are coupled through preamplifiers and detection circuits to bistable multivibrators in a signal processing section of the receiver. This latter section includes a pair of microcircuit pulse generators and a counter for determining the relative occurrence of the pulses and the time separation between the pulses. A third section of the receiver is comprised of monostable multivibrators, logic gates, attenuation circuits and bone conduction earpieces as output elements. This third section is responsive to the output signals of the processing section and enables the diver to perceive the direction of the underwater transmitter.
Inventors
- 👤 C Bohman
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-28 11:30
CPC Classifications
G; G01; G01S; G01S3/00; G01S3/80; G01S3/802; G01S3/808; G01S3/8083; Y; Y10; Y10S; Y10S367/00; Y10S367/901
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 13
Claim 1
Independent Claim
187 words
An underwater localization system for divers comprising transmitter means for providing supersonic pulse modulated signals, and receiver means adapted to receive said signals including transducer means affixed to each diver having right and left spaced hydrophones for producing first and second time displaced electrical signals in response to a received pulse modulated signal, means coupled to said transducer means for providing digital output signals indicative of the sequence in which said pulse modulated signal arrived at said right and left hydrophones, means responsive to said digital output signals for measuring the time difference between the arrival of said pulse modulated signal at said right and left hydrophones, means coupled to said measuring means for converting said time difference for a supersonic pulse modulated signal travelling in water to a time difference for an identical signal travelling in air, and means coupled to said measuring means, said converting means and responsive to said digital output signals for producing audible analog signals which are coupled into each diver''s head in the vicinity of his ears enabling him to use his oral direction perception ability to locate said transmitter means.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
187 words
An underwater localization system for divers comprising transmitter means for providing supersonic pulse modulated signals, and receiver means adapted to receive said signals including transducer means affixed to each diver having right and left spaced hydrophones for producing first and second time displaced electrical signals in response to a received pulse modulated signal, means coupled to said transducer means for providing digital output signals indicative of the sequence in which said pulse modulated signal arrived at said right and left hydrophones, means responsive to said digital output signals for measuring the time difference between the arrival of said pulse modulated signal at said right and left hydrophones, means coupled to said measuring means for converting said time difference for a supersonic pulse modulated signal travelling in water to a time difference for an identical signal travelling in air, and means coupled to said measuring means, said converting means and responsive to said digital output signals for producing audible analog signals which are coupled into each diver''s head in the vicinity of his ears enabling him to use his oral direction perception ability to locate said transmitter means.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
187 words
An underwater localization system for divers comprising transmitter means for providing supersonic pulse modulated signals, and receiver means adapted to receive said signals including transducer means affixed to each diver having right and left spaced hydrophones for producing first and second time displaced electrical signals in response to a received pulse modulated signal, means coupled to said transducer means for providing digital output signals indicative of the sequence in which said pulse modulated signal arrived at said right and left hydrophones, means responsive to said digital output signals for measuring the time difference between the arrival of said pulse modulated signal at said right and left hydrophones, means coupled to said measuring means for converting said time difference for a supersonic pulse modulated signal travelling in water to a time difference for an identical signal travelling in air, and means coupled to said measuring means, said converting means and responsive to said digital output signals for producing audible analog signals which are coupled into each diver''s head in the vicinity of his ears enabling him to use his oral direction perception ability to locate said transmitter means.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
187 words
An underwater localization system for divers comprising transmitter means for providing supersonic pulse modulated signals, and receiver means adapted to receive said signals including transducer means affixed to each diver having right and left spaced hydrophones for producing first and second time displaced electrical signals in response to a received pulse modulated signal, means coupled to said transducer means for providing digital output signals indicative of the sequence in which said pulse modulated signal arrived at said right and left hydrophones, means responsive to said digital output signals for measuring the time difference between the arrival of said pulse modulated signal at said right and left hydrophones, means coupled to said measuring means for converting said time difference for a supersonic pulse modulated signal travelling in water to a time difference for an identical signal travelling in air, and means coupled to said measuring means, said converting means and responsive to said digital output signals for producing audible analog signals which are coupled into each diver''s head in the vicinity of his ears enabling him to use his oral direction perception ability to locate said transmitter means.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
182 words
An underwater receiver for divers responsive to transmitted supersonic pulsed modulated signals comprising transducer means having right and left spaced hydrophones for producing first and second time displaced electrical analog signals in response to a received pulse modulated signal, means coupled to said transducer means and responsive to said electrical analog signals for providing digital output signals indicative of the sequence in which said received pulse modulated signal arrived at said right and left hydrophones, means responsive to said digital output signals for measuring the time difference between the arrival of said pulse modulated signal at said right and left hydrophones, means coupled to said measuring means for converting said time difference for a pulse modulated signal travelling in water to a time difference for a pulse modulated signal travelling in air, and means coupled to said measuring means, said converting means and responsive to said digital output signal for transforming said digital output signals into audible directional signals which enable each diver to determine the direction from which said pulse modulated signal originated by using his innate oral direction perception faculties.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
182 words
An underwater receiver for divers responsive to transmitted supersonic pulsed modulated signals comprising transducer means having right and left spaced hydrophones for producing first and second time displaced electrical analog signals in response to a received pulse modulated signal, means coupled to said transducer means and responsive to said electrical analog signals for providing digital output signals indicative of the sequence in which said received pulse modulated signal arrived at said right and left hydrophones, means responsive to said digital output signals for measuring the time difference between the arrival of said pulse modulated signal at said right and left hydrophones, means coupled to said measuring means for converting said time difference for a pulse modulated signal travelling in water to a time difference for a pulse modulated signal travelling in air, and means coupled to said measuring means, said converting means and responsive to said digital output signal for transforming said digital output signals into audible directional signals which enable each diver to determine the direction from which said pulse modulated signal originated by using his innate oral direction perception faculties.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
49 words
An underwater receiver as recited in claim 2 in which said transducer means includes preamplifiers and filter circuits, and said means for producing audible analog signals includes amplifiers and emitter-follower circuits wherein said transducer means has a bandwidth 4.3 times greater than said means for producing audible analog signals.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
40 words
An underwater receiver as described in claim 2 in which said transducer means includes serially connected preamplifier circuits and threshold circuits for controlling the input bandwidth of said receiver thereby eliminating background noise from said first and second electrical signals.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
38 words
An underwater receiver as recited in claim 2 in which said time difference measuring means includes logic circuits which provide an output signal for inhibiting said transducer means when said measured time difference is below a preset threshold.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
37 words
An underwater receiver as recited in claim 2 in which said means for providing digital output signals includes a first bistable multivibrator coupled to said right hydrophone and a second bistable multivibrator coupled to said left hydrophone.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
29 words
An underwater receiver as recited in claim 6 in which said means for measuring said time difference includes a binary counter coupled to said first and second bistable multivibrators.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
47 words
An underwater receiver as recited in claim 2 in which said time difference converting means includes logic circuits for providing a pulse having a width 4.3 times greater than the measured time difference between the arrival of said pulse modulated signal at said right and left hydrophones.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
41 words
An underwater receiver as recited in claim 2 in which said means for producing audible analog signals includes right and left bone conducting earpieces mounted on headgear worn by said divers for coupling said audible analog signals into each diver''s head.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1976-02-06 | 1976-08-07 | 1977-02-06 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1980-02-06 | 1980-08-07 | 1981-02-06 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1984-02-06 | 1984-08-07 | 1985-02-06 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |