ELECTRONICALLY STABILIZED BEAM FORMER SYSTEM

摘要

ELECTRONICALLY STABILIZED BEAM FORMER SYSTEM A sonar system comprising a curved transducer array, typically in the form of a cylinder, in which the transducer elements are arranged in geometrically similar configurations on each of a plurality of planes having symmetry about a common axis. In the presence of an incident beam of radiant energy, the transducer elements are excited by signals having values of delay which vary from transducer to transducer in a regular pattern resulting from the symmetry of the array. This permits the utilization of a relatively small memory for the storing of delay values as a function of the bearing and tilt of the center line of a receiving beam relative to the axis of the array. The delay values are read out of the memory via switching and recycling circuitry to successively apply a sequence of delay values to delay elements coupled to the transducer elements to accomplish a steering of a transmitted or received beam in both elevation and azimuth. This permits the formation of a set of beams which are space stabilized independently of rolling and pitching movements of the array.