Deep Underwater Autonomous Transportation Is One Of The Biggest Tests In The Field

Almost 80% of the ocean is still uncharted by humans, but autonomous underwater robots may soon map it. But will they only be used for that in the future?

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Autonomous robot submarines, also known as autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs), may operate without humans on board or in charge and can investigate high-pressure regions of the ocean floor that are inaccessible to humans through preprogrammed missions. While oil and gas businesses and scientists frequently utilize them for deep-water surveys and underwater research, the military now accounts for the majority of the market for AUVs as defensive security concerns continue to rise.

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In military ocean exploration, AUVs can be useful tools for gathering crucial data, such as mapping the bottom, hunting for mines (a current application in the Russia-Ukraine war), and providing underwater surveillance. Unmanned underwater vehicles are being purchased by navies all around the world to improve their inventory of submerged military equipment.

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When Anduril Industries purchased AUV manufacturer Dive Technologies in February, it began its expansion from land to sea. They now have a personal, programmable AUV dubbed the Dive-LD thanks to the acquisition.

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It's increasingly important to address threats on both the surface and under the surface of the water by using robotic systems that can hide from enemy surveillance, hide from sight from the air and do things that can only be done underwater, Palmer Luckey, co-founder of Anduril Industries, told Trade Algo at the time of its acquisition. 

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As part of the $100 million project with the Royal Australian Navy, Anduril Industries acquired Dive Technologies in March, then expanded into Australia in May with the help of the Australian Defense Force.

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The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom has placed an order with MSubs for its first AUV, the Cetus XLUUV, which is scheduled to be finished in around two years. Meanwhile, the UK's Ministry of Defence said in August that it will give Ukraine six autonomous underwater drones to help them locate and identify Russian mines as part of their conflict with Russia.

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The Zhu Hai Yun, an unmanned ship designed to deploy drones and use artificial intelligence to navigate the seas without a crew, was just finished in China. Officials in Beijing have classified the ship as a research instrument, but many analysts believe it will also be utilized for military operations.

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Since the 1970s, Boeing has been developing AUVs, and more recently, it has worked with DARPA and the US Navy on several underwater vehicle projects. After almost five years of design and development, the Echo Voyager, Boeing's first extra-large unmanned underwater vehicle, first started flying in 2017. It's suitable for exploration of oil and gas, long-duration surveying, and studying infrastructure for oil and gas businesses. It is 51 feet long with a 34 foot payload, which is roughly the size of a school bus.

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The AUV has operated at sea for approximately 10,000 hours and has made hundreds of independent nautical mile crossings. According to Ann Stevens, senior director of Maritime Undersea at Boeing, it is adaptable and modular.

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The Echo Voyager is the only vehicle of such size and capabilities in existence, according to Stevens.

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With assistance from the US Navy, Boeing has been working to create the Orca XLUUV. In February 2019, the business was awarded a $43 million contract to construct four of the AUVs, which are based on the Boeing Echo Voyager design. The Orca XLUUVs, which were scheduled for shipment in December 2020 but are now expected to be finished in 2024, have faced some production delays. The corporation cited necessarily come as well as supplier challenges owing to the epidemic as reasons for the shift.

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"It's a development plan, and we're building new technology that's never been developed before," Stevens said. "The entire time, we've been moving in lockstep with the Navy. The car that emerges from this process will be fantastic.

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According to Maani Ghaffari, an associate professor in the University of Michigan's Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering department, robotics and automation are still a relatively new discipline. Some 50–60 years ago, researchers started working on AUVs, but there were few sensors of sufficient quality and variety to build the systems. Sensors are now more compact, affordable, and high-quality.

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It is our hope that we will one day be able to deploy some of the robots to everyday life at some point because we are building better and more efficient hardware and sensors," Ghaffari explained.

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The robots still face a number of challenges before they can be used in everyday life. One of the challenges is that they have to operate in an environment that is arguably harsher than air, where a higher density of water causes hydraulic drag that slows them down and drains their batteries more quickly. 

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Despite this, some AUVs in development are able to travel at impressive speeds and endure long distances. In addition to sailing 6,500 nautical miles without docking, Boeing aims to complete the Orca XLUUV by the end of this year. It is reported that Anduril's Dive-LD has an autonomous mission capacity of up to 10 days and is made to last for up to three weeks at a time.

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AUVs face numerous environmental challenges. It is difficult to communicate underwater with the unmanned submarines because air signals easily absorb water, and the underwater cameras do not provide the same level of clarity. 

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The question of whether AUVs will someday be employed for more than just surveillance and engage in underwater combat is more one of ethics in robotics and artificial intelligence, according to Ghaffari. The ability of the vehicles to make autonomous decisions may be advanced, but worries arise when those decisions could have an influence on human life.

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"One concept is that you effectively hand off the combat to these robots instead of soldiers — less people may die, but on the other side, when the machine learning can decide and act more quickly than humans, that might enhance the amount of harm that they can cause," Ghaffari added. "That's the uncharted territory, and as we advance in the future, we need to talk about it."