Doing more with less – effective use of limited acoustic bandwidth
Communication and navigation on and above the surface of the ocean is mostly accomplished using electromagnetic waves. Once below the surface, electromagnetic waves do not get us very far, and often we have to either be disconnected and fully autonomous, use tethered systems to aid high-speed communication, or rely on acoustics for sensing, communication and navigation. Critical undersea operations require human-in-the-loop, and the cost and complexity of tethering sensors and robots can often be prohibitive. While sound propagates well under water, acoustic systems are severely constrained by limited available acoustic bandwidth. While acoustic systemshave become more performance and reliable as compared to what they used to be, physics sets a limit on how much data can be pushed through the acoustic channel.