Acoustic mine countermeasures

Abstract

A mine sweeping method and related apparatus for achieving at least tempoy passivation of underwater acoustic influence mines, by the generation of particular underwater sounds of progressively increasing intensity. The water is by repetitively injecting into the water individual metered slugs of heated water, which water is heated to its saturation pressure but below the critical point. The metered slugs of heated water may be of the same or of progressively increasing size, i.e. weight, and can be released from a heated pressure chamber into the water from either a stationary array or from an array towed from a moving ship, and at a depth such tht the expanding bubbles, produced by the change of state of the heated water, do not break the water surface. The rapid expansion of the metered slugs produce the desired sound output for temporarily rendering the acoustic influence mines passive by actuating their anticountermine circuits.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.