According to the latest reports, in the foreseeable future, the Russian armed forces will put into operation a state-of-the-art tracking system that will monitor various water areas by detecting surface, underwater and air targets. Domestic mass media report that by now the new project has reached the stage of construction of some objects, which is approaching the moment of the start of full-fledged work. According to reports, the new hydroacoustic tracking system is called "Harmony".
Details of the current work within the framework of the Harmony program were published on November 25 by Izvestia. The article "Russia is deploying a global maritime tracking system" revealed some of the details of current work and the general appearance of promising tracking devices. Previously, some data about the newest project was already available for free access. The latest publication at the moment seriously supplements the existing picture and reveals new details. At the same time, however, most of the information about the "Harmony" project is still not subject to disclosure and, apparently, will remain secret for the next several years.
According to Izvestia, the Russian Defense Ministry has already begun deploying a promising tracking system and has begun construction of several of its facilities. It is reported that in Severomorsk, preparations have begun for the construction of the so-called. workshop for the preparation of robotic products for monitoring the World Ocean. This part of the program is designated as "Harmony-S". The construction of the facility will be carried out by the Federal Agency for Special Construction (Spetsstroy). The timing of the completion of construction and installation of equipment has not been specified.
In addition, the construction of a facility is already underway, from which the new tracking system will be controlled. A new command post is being built on the territory of a military unit located in the village of Belushya Guba (Novaya Zemlya archipelago), which will manage the work of the Harmony complex. The project for the construction of the control center received the symbol "Harmony-NZ". Apparently, additional letters in the names of the objects were formed from the names of the regions where they were located.
According to reports, the development of the "Harmony" system began several years ago in accordance with the order of the Ministry of Defense. The main contractor for the order is the Kometa special-purpose space systems corporation, which is part of the Almaz-Antey aerospace defense concern. Also involved in the work were the St. Petersburg Marine Engineering Bureau "Malakhit" and the Research, Design and Technological Battery Institute "Istochnik". The task of these organizations was to create separate elements of the tracking system.
It is known that SPMBM "Malachite" within the framework of the "Harmony" program was engaged in development work under the codes "Harmony-Garage" and "Harmony-Pebbles". The task of NIAI "Source" was to create new storage batteries for autonomous devices of the tracking system. Details of the work of "Malachite" are unknown, while some information about the achievements of "Istochnik" was published not so long ago.
According to the domestic press, the main element of a promising surveillance system is the so-called. autonomous bottom station (ADS). This product is a complex consisting of various means of observation, signal processing and communication. The ADS should be delivered to the place of work using specially equipped submarines. Further, the station is dropped onto the ground and brought into working position. With the help of the available means, the ADS independently monitors the water area and detects various objects. The data on the found objects is transmitted over the radio channel to the control center of the system.
As follows from the available data, the autonomous bottom station includes a set of various special equipment and control systems. So, the project provides for the use of large-sized multi-element hydroacoustic antennas, providing monitoring of the situation and target detection in a wide range of ranges. It is mentioned that a hydroacoustic station from the ADS can operate in passive and active modes. The possibility of searching for submarines, surface ships and even airplanes is declared.
Signals from hydroacoustic systems must go to the data processing unit, which determines the main parameters of the target, such as the direction to it and the estimated range. The received data should be automatically sent to the operators of the complex. As part of the communication facilities, the bottom station should have a buoy that raises the transmitting antenna to the surface of the water.
Specially for the stations of the "Harmony" system, new type of rechargeable batteries have been developed, the characteristics of which correspond to special requirements. According to the published documents, within the framework of the development work "Harmony", NIAI "Source" developed the design and technology for the production of lithium-polymer batteries of the LP-16 and LP-16M types, as well as 22S-1P LP-16 and 16S-2P batteries LP- 16M based on them. Batteries of new types are proposed to be built on the basis of advanced batteries using an electronic control, monitoring and diagnostics system. The purpose of the latter is to improve battery performance and improve operational safety.
The LP-16 battery is a device with dimensions of 253x172x6 mm and a mass of 450 g. The maximum discharge current is 80 A. The LP-16M has similar parameters, but differs in capacity increased to 17.5 A ∙ h and a maximum discharge current of 88 A. The designers also managed to achieve some reduction in the weight of the product. In the case of both batteries, performance is ensured at temperatures from -10 ° C to + 45 ° C.
The 22S-1P LP-16 battery has a nominal capacity of 16 A ∙ h and a nominal voltage of 80 V. The discharge current is up to 80 A. The battery is fully assembled, with the installation of connectors, etc. equipment, has dimensions 386x214x255 mm and weighs no more than 22 kg. Product 16S-2P LP-16M is larger and heavier: 396x300x262 mm at 24 kg weight. At the same time, it has a capacity of 24 A ∙ h and a rated voltage of 58 V. The maximum discharge current is 27, 5 A. The operating time of accumulators and batteries based on them is 300 cycles. The service life is determined at 5 years.
The latest power supplies must ensure long-term operation of hydroacoustic and other systems of an autonomous bottom station. Battery life is not reported, however. Servicing of batteries should be carried out at the appropriate naval facilities or, possibly, by the crew of ships or carrier submarines.
It is argued that the new type of ADS will be able to automatically collapse before returning from duty. In this case, the station will independently remove antennas and a radio communication buoy, after which it will be able to return to the shore by appropriate means to prepare for the next stage of work.
According to Izvestia, autonomous bottom stations of the Harmony system can be combined into a single complex and work together. Several ADS, connected with each other and a single control center, will be able to simultaneously monitor large and extended water areas. The specific parameters of the zone of responsibility of such a complex or a separate station were not specified. We are talking about hundreds of square kilometers with the joint operation of several ADS.
The announced architecture and principles of operation of the "Harmony" system and its autonomous stations indicate the need to use certain vessels, whose task will be to bring the ADS to the duty station with their subsequent installation. There are no exact data on this yet, but certain assumptions have already been expressed. The Russian navy has a number of submarines and special-purpose ships, which, at least in theory, can become carriers of autonomous bottom systems.
It should be noted that specially equipped submarines should become the most convenient and promising carriers of ADF. This technique, in contrast to surface ships, has the ability to covertly enter a given area with the subsequent deployment of the bottom station. At the same time, a potential adversary will have minimal chances to learn about the locations of the autonomous bottom stations, thanks to which the areas where the elements of the "Harmony" system are located will remain a secret.
Several special submarines of the domestic fleet can be considered as possible carriers of the ADS "Harmony". According to various sources, the diesel-electric submarine B-90 "Sarov" of project 20120, as well as nuclear-powered BS-411 "Orenburg" (project 09774), K-139 "Belgorod" (project 949AM) and some others have the ability to transport a similar payload. ships. According to previously published information, the available special submarines can solve the problems of transportation and use of robotic systems for various purposes. From a certain point of view, the autonomous bottom stations of the "Harmony" detection system are also robots, which may be an argument in favor of the version about the use of existing submarines.
The developed system of tracking and detection "Harmony" in the future will have to solve one of the most important tasks to protect the borders of the country. Deployment of a number of ADS, controlled from one or more command posts, will allow constant monitoring of the selected water area. According to reports, such equipment will be able to identify submarines or surface ships, as well as detect some aircraft. Thus, a potential adversary will actually be deprived of the possibility of a covert exit to the area where the bottom stations are located. When a submarine or a ship approaches the deployed ADS at a certain distance, the automatics will record their presence and transmit the data to the command post on duty.
The published data on the appearance of the "Harmony" system are of certain interest from the point of view of possible application methods. So, the creation of an autonomous station, suitable for withdrawal to a given area and removal from duty at a certain time, gives the whole complex some advantages. The mobility of individual means of the tracking system, in theory, makes it possible to deploy the necessary objects in any areas of the World Ocean. First of all, such means will have to cover the Russian coast, but if necessary, ADF can be installed in any other areas of interest to the Russian navy.
At the moment, it is known about preparations for the construction of some objects of the promising complex and the beginning of work on the creation of others. Information about the progress of the development of autonomous seabed stations and information about their carriers has not yet been announced and, probably, will not become public in the near future. For this reason, while some aspects of a promising project are a topic for forecasts and discussions. Among other things, the timing of the start of operation of "Harmony" remains in question. So, the beginning of the operation of individual elements of the complex has already been mentioned, but their composition and other features, for obvious reasons, remain a secret.
The fleet will need some time to complete the construction of new facilities and master advanced technology. Only after all the necessary work has been completed, the "Harmony" tracking system will be able to start full-fledged work to protect the sea borders. The most probable date is the end of the current decade. By 2020, all new objects will be commissioned, and, possibly, work on the creation of individual elements of the complex will be fully completed. It should be noted that deviations from such a "schedule" in both directions are possible. The lack of official data makes it difficult to make accurate forecasts.
As follows from the latest news, in the foreseeable future, the Russian armed forces will receive new means of monitoring important water areas. Through the efforts of several defense industry enterprises, a promising tracking system "Harmony" has been created, which includes a number of different components. Some of the elements of this system may already be ready, while others are just being built. All the required work will have to be completed within the next few years, after which the navy will receive new means of detecting the enemy in a particular area.
