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New WASSP functionality >> WASSP Navigator more information when you need it.

The primary objective of the WASSP Multibeam Sonar is to enhance the skipper’s knowledge of his fishing environment, leading to improved catch rates, reduced gear damage and more productive sea time.

Developed in New Zealand by Electronic Navigation, it’s a combination of technologies packaged into a uniquely versatile and powerful electronic fishing tool.

WASSP has a wide range of applications for commercial fishing, including crayfish and lobster fishing, crab fishing, trawling, seining, shellfish dredging and long-line fishing (longlining).

Multibeam sonars are traditionally the realm of hydrographic surveyors and marine scientists. The WASSP Multibeam Sonar has been specifically designed to provide skippers with all the functions and advantages of multi-beam sonars.

WASSP delivers unparalleled 120° high resolution coverage

The WASSP WMB160F uses a transducer frequency of 160 kHz for an operating depth of between three and 200 metres. In 100 metres of water, the swath will cover a strip of sea floor 346 meters wide from port to starboard, i.e. 173 metres either side of the vessel. For WASSP WMB80F the frequency is 80kHz with the same wide swath . In 400m, the total coverage of the sonar swath is up to 1,394 meters.

Both 80 & 160 kHz frequency model of WASSP generate 112 seafloor points every ping within the swath coverage. These bottom points are joined in real time to generate accurate 2D and 3D bathymetric profiles.

At each of the 112 bottom points, information is also obtained on seafloor hardness. This enables the 2D Contour mode to display seafloor profiles by either depth or by seafloor hardness.

Seafloor hardness

WASSP will distinguish subtle changes in seafloor hardness, enabling skippers to accurately target fishing areas, leading to improved catch rates and reduced sea time.

Importantly, seafloor hardness profiles are presented in two modes – a traditional 2D contour map, which is saved onto the computer hard drive for future use when the vessel returns to the same fishing ground, and a side-scan sonar view to overlay water column fish information and seafloor hardness.

Fish overlay

Unique to WASSP, all fish marks are recorded and can be overlaid onto the 2D contour map to accurately position fish information relative to the vessel and to seafloor structure. This is an ideal feature for both mid-water and bottom trawling.

Bathymetric profiling

WASSP is a real time seafloor profiler, building detailed profiles as the vessel moves across fishing grounds. Every transmit pulse (up to eight per second) generates 90 seafloor points that are used to build accurate three-dimensional and 2D seafloor bathymetric profiles.

Seafloor profiling data can be saved for subsequent use, allowing fishermen to create their own seafloor profiles of the areas they fish. Historical information can be compared with real time WASSP data, overlaying fish schools for instance, or exported to existing plotting software packages.

Improved catch rates

Commercial Fishermen using WASSP, in markets as diverse as Europe, Asia, North America and Australasia, report improved catch rates, reductions in the time spent fishing, and appreciable fuel savings due to a greater understanding of their seafloor environment.