The Integral Consulting, Inc. NoiseSpotter® measures particle velocity, which provides information to discern the bearing of a source of sound. This is accomplished with an acoustic vector sensor array that triangulates particle motion measurements to determine the location and identity of a sound. Field testing was performed at PNNL-Sequim in a quiet part of Sequim Bay and in a more energetic environment in the Sequim Bay channel. Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and the Triton program’s assistance facilitated the development of NoiseSpotter® hardware and software systems, advancing the location estimation algorithm, flow noise mitigation system, electronics, pressure housing, vector sensor mounts, and deployment platform. Additionally, PNNL researchers aided in the enhancement of algorithms enabling for real-time processing of the vector data that can be transferred to a surface buoy and accessed by end users around the world via the cloud. Specifically, Triton coordinated testing at three permitted test locations, provided expertise to help overcome design challenges ranging from data and power budgets to electronic and environmental acoustic interference, as well as supported the design and fabrication of the data logger pressure housing.
In its last testing phase, the NoiseSpotter® completed a successful demonstration around the CalWave Power Technologies operational xWave™ wave energy converter deployed off the coast of La Jolla, California, which was supported by the Scripps Institution of Oceanography. This final demonstration characterized potential sound emissions from the CalWave operational xWave wave energy converter as well as other sounds nearby like marine mammal vocalizations. A significant capability of the NoiseSpotter® is that it can provide information about the location and identity of those sounds in real-time. Three configurations of NoiseSpotter® technology were demonstrated: real-time data collection with data transfer to the cloud, self-logging data collection with no surface expression, and a drifting version to gather data decoupled from water currents in the area. These tests helped the NoiseSpotter® take important steps toward commercialization.
FOA project DE-EE0007822