20120312221 | Submersible vehicles and methods for propelling and/or powering the same in an underwater environment - A submersible vehicle for use in water includes a vehicle body and a hybrid vehicle propulsion system to propel the vehicle body through the water. The hybrid vehicle propulsion system includes a passive thrust system and an active thrust system. The passive thrust system includes a force redirector and a buoyancy control system. The buoyancy control system is operable to selectively generate vertical thrust by varying a buoyancy of the submersible vehicle and the force redirector is configured to generate a glide thrust responsive to changes in the elevation of the submersible vehicle in the water. The active thrust system includes a thruster mechanism operable to selectively propel and/or steer the vehicle body through the water. | 12-13-2012 |