Bolt has developed and patented a new marine energy source based on a revolutionary design, the Annular Port Air Gun. This new air gun features substantial improvements in output over all existing air gun technology as well as dramatic improvements in towing efficiency. The annular Port Air Gun ranges in volume from 50 to 700 cubic inches.

The principal feature of the Annular Port Air Gun design is an annulus containing the air chamber and shuttle valve surrounding a hollow passage through which air supply hoses and electrical control cables are routed. The new air gun design features a number of advantages:

• Gun plates, air manifolds, and exposed air hose and electrical cable jumpers are eliminated.
• Air fittings and electrical connectors are protected from the effects of the air blast.
• Less drag results from smaller sub array profiles.
• Towing symmetry results in less energetic gun movements.,
• Bubble geometry results in increased acoustic output per unit volume of air.

The improvement in peak output is attributable to the increased surface area of the toroidal-shaped bubble compared to the spherically shaped bubble generated by a conventional 4-port air gun.

The annular configuration of the new air gun also permits the use of simplified multi-gun arrays that generate less towing drag. Linear gun clusters replace horizontal or vertical clusters found in conventional source arrays. Arrays comprising Annular Port Air Guns are easier to deploy and retrieve, consequently these arrays more effectively withstand the damage sustained by conventional arrays caused by frequent deployment and retrieval. Arrays configured with conventional air guns require individual tow plates, airline and electrical jumpers for each gun element. This configuration is cumbersome and exposes the air and electrical jumpers to the energetic air blast from the guns. Arrays configured with the new Annular Port Air Gun do not require tow plates, cluster spreader bars or exposed air and electrical jumpers.

2 Gun Annular Port Air Gun cluster showing digital firing controller placement	Profile of Annular Port Air Gun sub array with flexible element to element interconnects

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