Tiller Scientific+Medical

The Mobilarm V200

Challenge
The Mobilarm V200 is an emergency transmitter beacon for submariners.

Mobilarm Ltd commissioned the Tiller + Tiller Group to research, develop and design a mechanical solution for submariners in the US Navy.

Imagine being in a submarine, there’s a nuclear meltdown or the hull breaks up! You are wearing a survival suit rated to a depth of 300m, you abandon ship and finally make it to the surface. It’s icy cold, pitch black, the waves are treacherous and you have no way of contacting nearby craft...

While there are currently two other emergency transmitters available for submariners, they only communicate on the legacy 121.5MHz frequency, which is restricted to only search vehicles equipped with specialised equipment. Both devices are oil-filled to withstand the pressure and therefore are not serviceable – meaning when the battery dies the product is redundant.

The Mobilarm V200 is an emergency transmitter beacon for submariners.

Solution
Our teams from Tiller Scientific + Medical and Tiller Design joined forces with Mobilarm to create a new generation in survival beacons.

Compact and intuitive to operate it is capable of surviving ocean depths of up to 450m. It is purpose built to fit standard submariner survival suits and the only product of its type that is serviceable.

When it surfaces it automatically transmits a mayday voice message on VHF band channel 16 (emergency band) as well as DSC on channel 70, which will be picked up by any boat (from a tinnie to an aircraft carrier) nearby with a standard marine radio. By utilising an inbuilt GPS, the V200 transmits the exact coordinates of the casualty, allowing for faster rescue.

The V200 also transmits AIS (Automatic Identification System) messages making it visible to a ship’s radar as a mayday location, while transmitting a 121.5 MHz directional finding signal for rescuers to locate the survivor even in low visibility situations.

In addition, the V200 also incorporates a high intensity strobe light to help facilitate visual identification in night-time rescues.

V200 the only product of its type that is serviceable

Result
Potential for this product goes well beyond the US Navy, with other navies already expressing interest and prototypes in development for commercial and recreational devices employing similar technologies.

V200 a new generation in survival beacons