WATERSIDE SECURITY ROBOTICS: A CONCEPTUAL SYSTEM FEASIBILITY STUDY

WATERBORNE INTRUDER DETECTION AND NEUTRALIZATION SYSTEMS HAVE BEEN UNABLE TO KEEP PACE WITH THE TECHNOLOGICALLY ADVANCED WEAPONRY AND OFFENSIVE SYSTEMS NOW AVAILABLE TO ATTACKING SWIMMERS. OF THE MANY FACTORS CONTRIBUTING TO THE LACK OF PROGRESS IN ADDRESSING THIS CRITICAL SHORTFALL, TWO SERIOUS PROBLEMS OFTEN OCCUR IN MANY APPROACHES. FIRST, THE DEGRADING EFFECTS OF ENVIRONMENT AND THE GROSSLY DISSIMLAR CONDITIONS PREVAILING AT DIFFERENT LOCATIONS, IMPOSE A COMPLEX AND EXCEEDINGLY VARYING SET OF SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS. SECONDLY,THE CONTINUOUS, BROAD COVERAGE REQUIRED TO INSURE SECURITY, AS WELL AS THE LACK OF AUTOMATED ALARMS, LEAD TO A VARIETY OF DETECTION GAPS AND HEAVY DEPENDENCE ON TRAINED SENTRIES. THIS RESEARCH IS PROPOSED TO INVESTIGATE, STUDY AND REPORT NEW TECHNIQUES AND TECHNOLOGIES WHICH APPLY TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF A CONCEPTUAL ROBOTIC SYSTEM TO DETECT, ASSESS AND RESPOND TO WATERBORNE INTRUDERS. PSI WILL ADDRESS THIS PROBLEM THROUGH A SERIES OF TASKS DESIGNED TO CHART THE COURSE FOR FUTURE DEVELOPMENT OF A FEASIBLE COST EFFECTIVE WATERSIDE SECURITY ROBOTIC SYSTEM. THIS EFFORT WILL UTILIZE OUR AVAILABLE DATA AND EXPERTISE IN ROV TECHNOLOGY, INTRUDER DETECTION SENSORS, OPERATIONAL SCENARIOS, REAL WORLD ENVIRONMENTAL SITUATIONS AND LIMITATIONS INTRUSION SIMULATION MODELING, AND COUNTERMEASURE RESISTANCE.