U-Tow - Rugged, Versatile Undulating Towed Vehicle

U-Tow is an undulating, or fixed-depth, towed vehicle with a large adaptable payload for oceanographic sensors, analyzers and samplers. The system can be supplied as a basic vehicle for equipping with user supplied instrumentation or as a complete integrated system, tailored to suit a particular application.

U-Tow has been carefully designed as a rugged and reliable high capability vehicle, offering predictable flight characteristics and an extremely user friendly, easy to operate Windows front-end.

The U-Tow design was originally commissioned by the Sir Alister Hardy Foundation for Ocean Sciences (SAHFOS) in the mid 1990's as an enhancement of the Continuous Plankton Recorder (CPR), a device that has been extensively used for over 50 years, but has only a limited plankton sampling capability and can only operate near surface at a fixed depth.

U-Tow by comparison can be fitted with the advanced PSM (Plankton Sampling Mechanism) and a suite of sophisticated multi-parameter sensors. It also has the significant advantage of being able to undulate.

Features, Benefits & Applications

Benefits

• High reliability = low risk operation
• Superior hydrodynamic / control system design
• Backed by extensive science-led development program
• Rugged, durable and easy to maintain
• Low cost of ownership

Applications

• Rapid large-scale spatial surveys
• Phytoplankton and zooplankton sampling
• Autonomous use in ferry / cargo ship mode
• Large Marine Ecosystem programs
• Standard tool for research vessel use

Features

• Rugged, reliable and adaptable
• User friendly and easy to operate
• High capability - wide towing speed / depth range
• Purpose designed ecosystem monitoring tool
• Hydrodynamically stable

Summary

U-Tow is a rugged high capability undulating or fixed depth towed-vehicle providing the capacity to accommodate a large payload of oceanographic sensors, analyzers and samplers.

Download a detailed Datasheet.

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