NPU has made new achievements again! A new soft-bodied submersible imitating a manta ray appeared on the bottom of the South China Sea. CCTV released footage of the scene, and experts revealed another new situation in the future "confrontation" under the sea.
Preface:
"swims better than real fish and won't be eaten by sharks"! The "manta ray" developed by NPU has made a new breakthrough. The scene of real fish and bionic fish swimming together will no longer be imaginary.
The birth of advanced bionic fish is just the beginning. Researchers have revealed the latest development plan, opening up another possibility.
1. CCTV disclosed live footage, and NPU sent a surprise
In the past two days, a "manta ray" has flooded the Internet, but this "manta ray" is not that "manta ray", but a new type of submersible developed by humans. .
In the video released by CCTV, the manta ray-like soft submersible developed by Northwestern Polytechnical University appeared. In the picture, more than a dozen staff members pulled the rope and slowly lowered the manta ray-like soft submersible into the sea. Then, the submersible quickly took pictures of the coral reefs in the South China Sea and transmitted them back to the relevant systems. middle.
researchers said that by observing the swimming posture of organisms and observing anatomical specimens, they analyzed how to make the submersible swim faster and better. After many attempts, scientific researchers finally made a breakthrough in this field. Currently, they have developed 6 submersibles, ranging in weight from 10 kilograms to 720 kilograms. Lighter submersibles are mainly used to monitor the growth of marine life such as coral reefs; heavier submersibles have longer endurance, deeper dive depths, and can collect ocean data in a wider range.
Someone may want to ask at this point, if this kind of submersible is the same as a real fish, won't it be eaten by larger marine creatures such as sharks?
The answer is no. During the development, scientific researchers took this into consideration. If there are sharks and other creatures around, they will use sound to warn and drive away. Compared with whales, microorganisms have a greater impact on submersibles, because once too many microorganisms attach, they may affect the course of the submersible and affect the completion of the mission.
At present, scientific researchers have thought of ways to solve the problem of microbial adhesion.
The debut of a new manta ray-like soft submersible has attracted close attention. Some analysts say that the role of the manta ray-like soft submersible will not be limited to this. The current submersible is equipped with optical cameras, sonar systems and positioning systems, and new payloads may be added in the future. Last year, a 460-kilogram submersible was tested at a depth of more than 1,000 meters in the South China Sea and completed 60 days of underwater sliding, which means that it has been deployed in practice.
2. Experts analyze another possibility, which may open up a new situation
As more and more advanced small bionic submersibles are born, scientific researchers are trying to find ways to implement cluster application . A large number of submersibles can move at the same time and can carry out more changes. After long-distance navigation and arriving at the target area, different tasks can be performed depending on the load carried.
For China, these manta ray-like soft submersibles were developed only to observe the growth of coral reefs on the seabed, but military experts have seen another possibility hidden behind them.
Experts analyzed that compared with imitating submarines and traditional-shaped submersibles, submersibles imitating manta ray parades have stronger endurance, longer range, and better stealth performance. They can be used in underwater reconnaissance, anti-submarine and anti-ship missions. will play a huge role.
It is worth mentioning that the United States is also developing similar technology, but compared with China's civilian use, the military purpose of the United States is more obvious. The "Manta Ray" unmanned underwater vehicle it developed has completed testing. U.S. officials have even made high-profile claims that unmanned underwater vehicles represented by "manta rays" will determine the outcome of future ocean wars.
In fact, in addition to the civilian version of the bionic submersible, China also has a military version of the unmanned underwater vehicle. At the previously held 9th China Military Intelligent Technology and Equipment Expo, Chinese companies exhibited various types of unmanned undersea vehicles, including the Chinese version of the "Manta Ray" unmanned undersea vehicle, and also generously announced the unmanned undersea vehicle performance data.
It is worth mentioning that a large number of underwater bionic unmanned underwater vehicles can also operate in clusters to improve mission completion rates and be used for reconnaissance of enemy targets. When bionic unmanned underwater vehicles appear in large numbers in the target sea area, all the enemy's actions will be exposed.
3. China’s first step is not just talk.
In fact, China’s lead in the field of unmanned underwater vehicles is far more than that. In addition to the endless emergence of underwater vehicles with various performances, its ability to hunt enemy targets is also constantly increasing. upgrade.
During the Russia-Ukraine conflict, various countries saw the huge role of unmanned submarines in attacking enemy ships. The tactic of "using small to expand big" provided new ideas for many countries.
As we all know, the United States has an asymmetric advantage over China in the field of nuclear submarines. When the outside world focuses on China's development of next-generation nuclear submarines, aircraft carrier battle groups, anti-submarine patrol aircraft, etc., it ignores another fact, that is, the unmanned underwater vehicle is used against China. It will play an unimaginable role in the detection and attack of enemy submarines.
However, the development of unmanned underwater vehicles must solve a difficult problem, namely the size of sonar. High-power sonar is large and can only be installed on large ships, and the detection range of small sonar is not enough.
At a critical moment, Chinese scientific researchers made a new breakthrough. developed the world's smallest high-power phased array sonar , which is small enough to be installed in a shoe box. This provides China with a large number of unmanned underwater vehicles. new possibilities.
It is no exaggeration to say that China’s technology is far ahead. Previously, the world’s smallest sonar equipment was developed in Germany. It was 1 meter in size and weighed 100 kilograms. It was too difficult to put it on an unmanned submarine. , one can imagine the significance of this breakthrough by Chinese researchers.
When a large number of these sonar are installed on unmanned submarines, China will have more advantages in the future undersea battlefield. China's leadership is never just talk.
