Depointable parametric echosounder, and method for characterizing part of the subsoil of an underwater environment

摘要

The invention relates to an echosounder configured to: a) drive the transducers of its transmitting antenna (10) to emit a first and a second acoustic wave having a first and a second frequency, these waves being superimposed on each other on a along an axis of superposition (zS) directed towards a point (P1) of the bottom (4) of the underwater environment (3), and b) acquire an echo signal of frequency equal to the difference between the first and the second frequency, the echo sounder being configured to perform steps a) and b) several times, varying the orientation of the superposition axis, and to determine, from the echo signals acquired, an image representative of the content of the basement (40) of the underwater environment under each of said points. The invention also relates to an associated method for characterizing part of the subsoil of an underwater environment. Figure for the abstract: Fig. 5