Patent ID: 11906681
Assignee: BLUE OCEAN SEISMIC SERVICES LIMITED
Field: Transport (Mechanical engineering)
Classification: CPC B  G | IPC B  G

Claim 11:
12. An autonomous data acquisition node comprising:
a buoyancy system enabling variation of the node buoyancy between positive buoyancy and negative buoyancy, the buoyancy system being operable as a buoyancy propulsion system enabling the node to transit between two seabed locations;
a seismic sensor to detect seismic energy when the node is landed at a seabed location;
a first transceiver apparatus for use with a first acoustic positioning system, the first acoustic positioning system operable between the node and a surface vessel to guide the node when landing at the seabed location;
a second transceiver apparatus for use with a second acoustic positioning system, the second acoustic positioning system operable between the node and other nodes when transiting between seabed locations without the node surfacing; and
a controller to control the buoyancy system to achieve a desired buoyancy, the controller configured to vary node buoyancy between a positive buoyancy and a negative buoyancy to maintain the node within a transit envelope below the water surface and above a seabed to facilitate the node traversing along an oscillating path from a first submarine location to a second submarine location.