Impact Subsea's ISS360 Series Redefines Compact Sonar

Impact Subsea, a leader in subsea sensor technology, has continued to develop their ISS360 Imaging Sonar range since its debut in 2020. The ISS360 is a solution for ROV and AUV navigation and target identification, offering a replacement for legacy scanning sonar systems.

A Five-Year Journey

Launched in March 2020 as the world’s smallest scanning, imaging sonar, the ISS360, was designed to provide a step-change in capability for the underwater vehicle market.

Over the past five years, Impact Subsea has maintained a development roadmap to meet the increasing demands of the subsea industry:

• 2020: Introduced resilient operation via inductive coupling, removing the need for slip rings, a common failure point in traditional scanning sonars.

• 2021: Launched the 6,000-meter rated ISS360, featuring a Titanium housing and specialized pressure-compensated components for ultra-deepwater missions.

• 2022: The launch of the ISS360HD brought a 1° acoustic angular resolution and a 2.5mm range resolution, enabling operators to identify targets in zero-visibility conditions with unprecedented detail.

• 2023: Direct GitHub access to an Open-Source Software Development Kit (SDK), allowing AUV developers to integrate the sonar directly into bespoke software packages.

• 2024: Released Impact Subsea Signaling Scheme (IS³) to reduce interference between sonars operating in close proximity to each other. This advanced signaling scheme makes use of CHIRP combined with Phase Shift modulation and coding.

• 2024: Released the ISP360, expanding the sonar range with a profiling sonar option.

Open-Source Software Development Kit

Impact Subsea provides a free, open-source Software Development Kit (SDK) for direct integration. This operating-system-independent library, available via GitHub, has allowed AUV developers and manufacturers to integrate the ISS360 sonar directly into software packages, enabling custom interfaces and advanced vehicle autonomy.

An Upgrade for Legacy Systems

If your operations rely on recently discontinued compact scanning sonar lines, the ISS360 offers a path forward.

To ensure peak performance throughout the life of the sensor, Impact Subsea offers professional servicing to maintain seal integrity, O-rings and calibration.

Performance

Notable achievements of the ISS360 include:

• High-Value Recovery: Guiding a Mohawk ROV to recover over $1 million in lost oceanographic equipment in near-zero visibility.

• Scientific Autonomy: Integration into the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) REMUS AUVs for advanced obstacle avoidance.

• Infrastructure Lead: Trusted by Bay Dynamics for high-precision reservoir inspections.

• Cable Touchdown Monitoring: Integrated with North Sea Systems’ CableFish system.

Looking forward, Impact Subsea continues to invest in the long-term development of the ISS360 and ISP360 Sonar range. Further new developments in the ISS360 range are expected to be released later in 2026.