AUVS technical guide
AUV Communications
Why underwater bandwidth is scarce and how acoustic, optical, radio and satellite links divide the job.
Core concept
Seawater strongly attenuates conventional radio. Submerged AUVs therefore use acoustic modems for low-bandwidth status, commands or positioning; short-range optical links can carry more data when water clarity and alignment permit.
What engineers and buyers should verify
At or near the surface, Wi-Fi, UHF, cellular or satellite systems can report health, update missions and transfer selected data. Full survey datasets are commonly retrieved after recovery because sonar and imagery volumes exceed practical underwater links.
Reading specifications responsibly
Configuration, payload, speed and mission conditions matter. AUVS preserves the manufacturer’s published language, marks unavailable values as “Not published,” and links every vehicle record to provenance.