MCMS submersibles: A safe undersea adventure

Abstract

Abstract. Maritime Cruises Mini-Submarines (MCMS), a company based in Greece, aims to offer safe and deep-sea exploratory experiences to tourists. This paper discusses the primary challenges involved in ensuring tourist safety, particularly focusing on maintaining security in scenarios of mechanical failures or lost communication with the main vessel. We propose comprehensive safety protocols and technological solutions tailored for deep-sea tourist submersibles. The analysis begins with a detailed study of the forces acting on a submersible, considering both operational modes and the impact of ocean currents, utilizing a rigid-body coordinate system and Eulerian angular coordinate transformations to describe the submersibles motion comprehensively. We derive motion and safety parameters by solving the force differential equations, allowing the host ship to predict the submersibles position accurately. In addressing the recovery of lost submersibles, our approach evaluates power loss scenarios and search efficiency, recommending an optimal combination of hydroacoustic and frequency-hopping communication technologies for reliable, low-loss data transmission. We further enhance search methodologies by integrating motion parameters and ocean current dynamics to pinpoint probable locations, adjusting search strategies dynamically based on real-time data, and employing probabilistic models to optimize resource allocation during search operations. A case study in the Caribbean Sea exemplifies applying these methodologies, incorporating localized flow regimes and cooperative communication strategies among multiple submersibles to improve operational efficiency and safety.