PHYSICAL SCIENCES INC. — Department of Defense SBIR Phase I: N171-068

Description

Many current submarine systems use the OA-9070B or E capstan towed array deployment and retrieval system. The OA-9070 is dependent on friction to generate marginally adequate deployment force to push the array through the friction inherent in the aft rollers. Repeated deployment and retraction cycles smooth the capstan surface, reducing the coefficient of friction to unacceptable levels.<br><br>Physical Sciences, Inc. Materials Systems Division is teaming with Granite State Manufacturing to provide NAV-SEA with a high friction, high cycle life coating that will significantly increase the capstan-to-array friction and reduce the inspection and maintenance requirements of the OA-9070 system. The coating will be easily installed in-situ without removing the capstan hub and will function in the demanding military maritime environment. The coating can be removed and replaced as necessary during standard refits of the overall system.<br><br>During the Phase I effort, PSI and GSM will demonstrate the array-capstan friction achievable with the approach under a range of temperature and contamination conditions. In future work, the approach will be rapidly transitioned to full functional testing, optimizing both the coating friction and the installation method.