Autonomous, Cooperative Behavior Amongst Unmanned Surface Vehicles

In the future, the U.S. Navy will likely use unmanned surface vehicles (USVs) as an integral part of the Navy’s transformation to a networked, more agile force. Navy planners see USVs operating extensively in ocean, littoral (coastal), and riverine areas. USVs are less vulnerable operating on the water's surface than unmanned aerial and submersible vehicles in their respective areas. Unmanned systems are increasingly being used to provide persistent littoral surveillance for a broad range of missions, including reconnaissance, force protection, mine detection, special operations, antisubmarine warfare (ASW), and intelligence collection. The ability for Unmanned Surface Vehicles (USVs) to autonomously operate in a collaborative manner will significantly enhance mission capabilities. Robotic Research, LLC in partnership with General Dynamics Robotic Systems (GDRS), proposes to develop a multi-vehicle, collaborative, autonomous control system for Unmanned Surface Vehicles. Robotic Research and GDRS have already developed and demonstrated similar software for Unmanned Ground Vehicles for the U.S. Army. The system proposed here will leverage the GDRS Autonomous Navigation System (ANS) for vehicle command and control system to the Navy’s unmanned surface vessel domain