Ordering :: Acoustic Communications Group

Process

The Acoustic Communications Group has established a Cost Center at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution to fabricate Micro-Modems and related hardware for use on internal projects and for sale to universities, government labs and commercial entities. Due to the accounting system at WHOI, ordering Micro-Modem hardware is slightly different than ordering from a standard vendor. For that reason the process is outlined below.

Contact and Discuss: Contact the Cost Center Manager regarding your application and any supporting hardware. They will help you determine the best set of hardware that is required for your application. Typical questions that will need to be answered are listed in the Micro-modem Ordering Questionaire form lower on this page.
Please contact Keenan Ball (Cost Center Manager) at kball@whoi.edu or Lee Freitag at lfreitag@whoi.eduto discuss your acoustic communication hardware needs.
Pre-proposal Quote: Based on the discussions with the customer, the Cost Center Manager will provide an initial quote for the hardware. Some quotes may be just for hardware. Others may include labor for integration and field support depending on the application and agreement of the customer. If there are items that need to be added or deleted, the Cost Center Manager will update the quote.
Quote Acceptance Email: Once you are satisfied with the quote, have determined that funds are available and you would like to proceed, simply send a confirmatory email to the Cost Center Manager. DO NOT SEND A PURCHASE ORDER IN RESPONSE TO THE PRE-PROPOSAL QUOTE. Please follow the instructions listed at the bottom of the pre-proposal quote.
WHOI Proposal: Upon receiving an email confirmation, a formal proposal will be generated at WHOI and sent to you to forward to your purchasing department. The formal proposal will provide instructions on where to send your purchase order and any other required documentation. Formal proposals can take up to 3-4 days to be processed.
Fabrication and Delivery: Once all the required documentation has been received at WHOI, fabrication, assembly and then delivery of your hardware will begin.
Payment: After the order has been delivered to the customer, the WHOI Accounts Payable office will the bill for the order.

Micro-modem Quote Request Questionnaire:

To assist in describing the application that Micromodem hardware will be used in, we have provided a page that shows some commonly used operating examples. Please visit our common scenario page here »

First name*
Last name*
Email address*
Telephone number(s)*
Mailing address
Shipping address
What is the application that you are going to use the Micromodem hardware? Please provide as much detail as possible.
How many modems do you estimate will be needed for your application?
Is there a particular acoustic frequency band (10kHz, 15kHz, 25 kHz or other) that the application requires to be compatible to other Micro-Modem based hardware?
What is the operating depth and communication range for the application?
Is the primary communication channel vertical or horizontal?
- Vertical
- Horizontal
What form factor power amplifier fits in your application? Please refer to the Documentation page of this website.
What supply voltage will you provide to the Micromodem hardware (12V, 24V or 36V @ 50W during TX)? Please refer to our Installation and Testing page for a detailed explanation.
What data rate or how many bytes per packet does your application require? (FSK supports 80bps or 32 bytes per packet. PSK supports up to 5000bps or 2k bytes per packet. International Customers: Export restrictions allow us to only provide PSK hardware domestically at this time.)
Will the Micromodem be integrated into the customer’s electronics housings or will it need a separate housing? If so, what are the size limitations? We have several housing designs available.
If the Micro-Modem is to be installed in a dedicated housing will the customer provide the cables to interface the Micro-Modem housing to their system?
- Yes
- No
If the Micro-Modem is to be installed in a dedicated housing what communication interface will be used to interface with the Micro-Modem (i.e. RS232, RS485 etc.)?
Will topside hardware such as a deck box (a self powered housing that allows for easy interface between a PC and an over the side transducer), over the side transducer towfish, or buoy be needed to support the vehicle or mooring based Micro-Modem hardware?
- Yes
- No
For networking applications, WHOI typically uses a Gumstix computer to handle the MAC level duties, serial routing (in dual modem housings) and logging functions of modem serial traffic. Does the customer’s application require the use of the Gumstix com?
- Yes
- No
Is integration and operational support going to be needed from WHOI? If so, what is your timeline along with test dates?
Is the project that the Micro-Modem hardware will be used, funded by ONR, NSF or another government funded agency? If so, which? There are certain fees associated with particular funding sources that WHOI must honor or waive. See Fee Policy section below.
When do you need the modem hardware?
MM slash DD slash YYYY

WHOI Fee Policy

Most domestic orders are subjected to a 10% fee and international orders a 15% fee. However, depending on the funding source the fee may vary or be waived..

The following is from the WHOI Grants and Contracts Office regarding fees that are applied to proposals.

“The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution is authorized to charge fees in accordance with existing government regulations. The Institution requests fees on both contracts and subcontracts. The fees are considered unrestricted funds and are utilized by the Institution Director and the Director of Research in the pursuit of science and engineering. These funds are used for cost sharing for instrumentation, for proof of concept research and development and a wide variety of other research related activities.”

Seller’s Export Restriction Disclosure

WHOI is subject to United States laws and regulations, including but not limited to the Arms Export Control Act, as amended and the Export Administration Act of 1979, both controlling the export of certain technical data (including software), and other commodities. The transfer of controlled technical data and commodities to a foreign person in the United States or export to a foreign country may require permissions or an export license from a cognizant agency of the United States Government.

At the request of WHOI, the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) has classified the Micro-Modem as ECCN of <5A001.b.1.a> with the reasons for control being National Security NS2 and Anti Terrorism AT1. BIS relies on information supplied by WHOI and an evaluation by their personnel. Any use of this classification is without recourse to WHOI and at risk of user.

Exports or re-exports of any U.S. technology to any foreign national or destination unde U.S. sanction or embargo are forbidden.

WHOI does not provide licensing advice to buyers. The information provided herein on export laws is not complete. An exporter of record needs to obtain guidance from:

http://www.access.gpo.gov/bis/ear/ear_data.html or http://www.pmddtc.state.gov/consolidateditar.htm

Prepared for the Micro-Modem Cost Center by Wallace Stark OAO (WHOI) November 14, 2008.

Ordering

Process

Micro-modem Quote Request Questionnaire:

WHOI Fee Policy

Seller’s Export Restriction Disclosure

Documentation & Support

Quick links