The Invention and Developing of Multibeam Echosounder Technology

Abstract

When a man has mastered the ability to travel by sea, he began to wonder what is the depth clearance under the keel and how to measure the depth. Initially, only coastal shipping was practiced. Cargo ship sailing, fishery, underwater scientific research, recreational diving as well as resource exploration and operation of submarine cables and pipelines laying were developing dynamically in this part of the continental shelf. That is why accurate bathymetric information was of great importance to masters, scientists, fishermen, ship-owners and all seafarers.Cartographic compilation of even a primitive nautical chart was a huge challenge. It was a painstaking process and required, first and foremost, a large amount of data, which was primarily obtained through not efficient measurements. As technology progresses, new techniques and methods of ocean exploration have developed. The technology, systems, devices and instruments of underwater exploration have gone through a long way of change, modernization and improvements, ultimately creating the potential for a bottom surface visualization as three-dimensional spatial models. A significant role has been played by multibeam echosounder which revolutionized the hydrographic surveys and proved to be efficient means of hydrographic and oceanographic surveys.