SONAR

Glass Water Tank with Rigid MS Base

Soft glass with 15 mm wall thickness.

Dimensions: 6’ × 4’ × 4’, open from top.

Designed to withstand 2,000 kg of water.

Scale provided for water level indication.

Maximum recommended level: 3 feet.

Heater rod installation provision available.

Rigid lightweight metal platform to hold tank.

Cushion provided to avoid metal–glass contact & absorb vibrations.

Anti-vibration pads used under base legs.

Mechanical Gantry

Frame: Extruded Aluminium

Lead screw mechanism, pitch: 2 mm

Axis Motion Ranges:

– X-Axis : max traverse 610 mm.
– Y-Axis : max. 430 mm, min. 280 mm.
– Z-Axis : max traverse 650 mm.

Rotational Axis: 360°

Sensor Holder

Material: Delrin

Holding capacity: 1 kg

Holder length: 2.5’, telescopic +1.5’, max span: 4’

Motors

Side A & Side B:

6 Stepper Motors each for X-Y-Z motions

6 Motors for rotational motion (R1, R2, R3, R4, R5, R6)

X & Y axis: 20 kg stepper motor

Z &  Rotational axis: 10 kg stepper motor

Electrical Control Panel

2 × NI 24-channel Digital I/O cards

2 × PLCs

7 × Opto-isolator cards

12 × Stepper motor drives

SMPS-1: 24V DC, 2.5A

SMPS-2: 24V DC, 20A

SMPS-3: 36V DC, 16A

3 × MCB

Software

Motion Control Software (EXE) based on LabVIEW.

Provided as Test/Demo program for axis motion.

Custom advanced software available as optional upgrade.

DELIVERABLES

6’ × 4’ × 4’ Water Tank mounted on Rigid MS Base – 1 No

Mechanical Gantry with 12 AXIS of Motion – 1 Set

Control Panel – 1 No

Akademika Motion Control Software (Test/Demo Version) – 1 No

2W Heaters – 1 No.

½ HP Water Pump – 1 No

Inlet Pipe – 12 feet

Outlet Pipe – 100 feet

Set of Manuals – 1 No

CUSTOMERS

INS Valsura (Ministry of Defence)

Indian Naval Academy (Ministry of Defence)

Akademika developed an advanced electromechanical underwater research platform to allow professors and students to perform underwater experiments directly inside the laboratory.

The experiment involved using this platform to study underwater communication and to test different acoustic transducers and sensors inside a controlled water tank environment.

Using the automated 12-axis gantry, the team positioned and moved sensors precisely in X-Y-Z directions and rotated them 360° to capture underwater acoustic responses.

The system’s integrated LabVIEW motion control software was used to automate sensor movement, triggering measurements, and observing underwater signal behavior.

Under-water communication experiments.

Testing of different sensors under water.

Motion-controlled underwater measurements using 12-axis gantry.

Under-water acoustic research in controlled lab environment.

This experiment demonstrated how the platform can replicate realistic underwater conditions, enabling research on signal propagation, sensor performance, and acoustic communication techniques without needing open-water testing.