Patent ID: 8336479

Claim:
A submersible object management (SOM) system for releasing and/or recovering a plurality of submersible objects within a body of liquid, the SOM system comprising: a hold for storing the plurality of submersible objects; and a deployment system selectively operable to controllably release at least one of the plurality of submersible objects from the hold into submersion in the body of liquid and/or selectively operable to controllably direct at least one of the plurality of submersible objects into the hold from submersion in the body of liquid, wherein the deployment system includes: a guide that is selectively extendable to direct the at least one submersible object, the guide including a plurality of extendable guide members configured to engage the at least one submersible object; and a dispenser being configured to convey at least one of the submersible objects between the hold and a staging location, wherein the dispenser includes: a revolver member including a plurality of beds each configured to hold a respective one of the submersible objects; and a drive mechanism to rotate the revolver member to selectively position each of the beds adjacent the staging location.