The design and development of a U.S. Navy sonobuoy optical remote function select system

The u.S. Navy currently uses sonar buoys (sonobuoys) launched from aircraft to locate and track submerged submarines. The sonobuoys are manually programmed on the ground prior to insertion in the aircraft sonobuoy launch tube (SLT) , to operate at the projected optimum depth, lifetime and radio frequency (RF) data transmission channel for the search area. As conditions change in the operation area, there is no way to reprogram the sonobuoys in flight for optimum operation. The Optical Remote Function Select (ORFS) is a system which allows the operator to interrogate, program and verify these operational parameters as many times as required while the buoy is in the aircraft SLT. The ORFS system consists of a computer, a modulator/demodulator and an optical data link. This thesis details the design and development, including results of laboratory and flight testing, of a single SLT ORFS system developed at the Naval Air Development Center. The report also details a complete system design proposed for the u.S. Navy P-3C aircraft and preliminary work done towards the verification of the ORFS system.