Strobe Beacon for Autosub Long Range

Planet Ocean (UK) has announced it has been chosen to supply the surface strobe beacon for the latest version of the National Oceanography Centre Southampton's, deep diving, autonomous underwater vehicle Autosub Long Range (ALR). ALR is an ultra-low power vehicle achieving an unparalleled operational endurance whilst being capable of diving to 6,000m, and even hibernating for periods at sea.

Planet Ocean has supplied a XEOS Technologies XMF-7500 solid state strobe beacon for fitting into the tailfin of the new long range vehicle. Its small size (30% smaller and lighter than alternatives) makes it ideal for this application.

The super-bright LED provides unparalleled visibility in even the worst conditions. Operating at depths of up to 7500 m, the XMF-7500 is significantly smaller and lighter than other flashers meaning easier storage and installation without any sacrifice in performance or operational visibility. User selectable flash patterns and repetition rates together with a no moving parts capacitance activation system make this a very useable device for a variety of marking applications, search and rescue, ROVs, AUVs etc.

The XMF-7500 is also available with a remote flasher head and in a shallow, 1,000m version. The XMF-7500 is a member of the new "micro family" of beacons including devices for ARGOS & VHF location monitoring. XEOS Technologies also manufacture surface and sub-surface mooring beacons using the Iridium satellite system.