The Russian fully autonomous unmanned underwater vehicle "Poseidon" has no analogues in the world

The history of the creation of marine robotic systems began in 1898 at Madison Square Garden, when the famous Serbian inventor Nikola Tesla demonstrated a radio-controlled submarine at an exhibition. Some believe that the idea of ​​​​creating aquatic robots reappeared in Japan at the end of World War II, but in fact the use of “human torpedoes” was too irrational and ineffective.

After 1945, the development of marine remote-controlled vehicles went in two directions. In the civilian sphere, deep-sea bathyscaphes appeared, which later developed into robotic research complexes. And military design bureaus tried to create surface and underwater vehicles to perform a whole range of combat missions. As a result, various unmanned surface vehicles (USVs) and unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs) were created in the USA and Russia.

The US Navy began using uninhabited marine vehicles immediately after World War II. In 1946, during tests of atomic bombs at Bikini Atoll, the US Navy remotely collected water samples using UAVs - radio-controlled boats. In the late 1960s, remote control equipment for mine sweeping was installed on the UAV.

In 1994, the US Navy published the UUV Master Plan, which provided for the use of devices for mine warfare, information collection and oceanographic tasks in the interests of the fleet. In 2004, a new plan for underwater drones was published. It described missions for reconnaissance, mine and anti-submarine warfare, oceanography, communications and navigation, patrol and protection of naval bases.

Today, the US Navy classifies UUVs and UUVs by size and application. This allows us to divide all robotic marine vehicles into four classes (for ease of comparison, we apply this gradation to our marine robots).

X-Class. The devices are small (up to 3 m) UAVs or UUVs, which must support the actions of groups of special operations forces (SSO). They can conduct reconnaissance and support the actions of a naval strike group (CAG).

Harbor Class. UAVs are developed on the basis of a standard 7-meter boat with a rigid frame and are designed to perform maritime security and reconnaissance tasks. In addition, the device can be equipped with various fire weapons in the form of combat modules. The speed of such UUVs, as a rule, exceeds 35 knots, and the operating autonomy is about 12 hours.

Snorkeler Class. It is a seven-meter long UUV designed for mine warfare, anti-submarine operations, as well as supporting Navy MTR operations. The speed under water reaches 15 knots, autonomy - up to 24 hours.

Fleet Class. 1 1-meter UAV with a rigid body. Designed for mine warfare, anti-submarine warfare, and participation in naval operations. The speed of the device varies from 32 to 35 knots, autonomy - up to 48 hours.

Now let's look at the UUVs and UUVs that are in the service of the US Navy or are being developed in their interests.

CUSV (Common Unmanned Surface Vessel). The unmanned boat, belonging to the Fleet Class, was developed by Textron. Its tasks will include patrolling, reconnaissance and strike operations. The CUSV is similar to a conventional torpedo boat: 11 meters long, 3.08 meters wide, and a maximum speed of 28 knots. It can be controlled either by an operator at a distance of up to 20 km, or via satellite at a distance of up to 1,920 km. The autonomy of CUSV is up to 72 hours, in economy mode - up to one week.

ACTUV (Anti-Submarine Warfare Continous Trail Unmanned Vessel). The 140-ton Fleet Class UAV is an autonomous trimaran. Purpose: submarine hunter. Capable of accelerating to 27 knots, cruising range - up to 6,000 km, autonomy - up to 80 days. On board it has only sonars for detecting submarines and means of communication with the operator to transmit the coordinates of the found submarine.

Ranger. BPA (X-Class), developed by Nekton Research for participation in expeditionary missions, underwater mine detection missions, reconnaissance and patrol missions. Ranger is designed for short missions, with an overall length of 0.86 m, it weighs just under 20 kg and moves at a speed of about 15 knots.

REMUS (Remote Environmental Monitoring Units). The world's only underwater robot (X-Class), which took part in combat operations during the 2003 Iraq War. The UUV was developed on the basis of the Remus-100 civilian research vehicle from Hydroid, a subsidiary of Kongsberg Maritime. Solves the tasks of conducting mine reconnaissance and underwater inspection work in shallow sea conditions. REMUS is equipped with a side-scan sonar with increased resolution (5x5 cm at a distance of 50 m), a Doppler log, a GPS receiver, as well as sensors for temperature and electrical conductivity of water. UUV weight - 30.8 kg, length - 1.3 m, working depth - 150 m, autonomy - up to 22 hours, underwater speed - 4 knots.

LDUUV (Large Displacement Unmanned Undersea Vehicle). Large combat UUV (Snorkeler Class). According to the concept of the US Navy command, the UUV should have a length of about 6 m, an underwater speed of up to 6 knots at a working depth of up to 250 m. The navigation autonomy should be at least 70 days. The UUV must perform combat and special missions in remote maritime (ocean) areas. The LDUUV is armed with four 324 mm torpedoes and up to 16 sonar sensors. The attack UUV should be used from coastal points, surface ships, and from the silo launcher (silo launcher) of Virginia-class and Ohio-class multi-purpose nuclear submarines. The requirements for the weight and size characteristics of the LDUUV were largely determined by the dimensions of the silos of these boats (diameter - 2.2 m, height - 7 m).

Marine robots of Russia

The Russian Ministry of Defense is expanding the range of use of UUVs and UUVs for maritime reconnaissance, combat against ships and UUVs, mine warfare, coordinated launch of groups of UUVs against high-value enemy targets, detection and destruction of infrastructure, such as power cables.

The Russian Navy, like the US Navy, considers the integration of UUVs into fifth-generation nuclear and non-nuclear submarines a priority. Today, marine robots for various purposes are being developed for the Russian Navy and deployed in parts of the fleet.

"Seeker". Robotic multifunctional unmanned boat (Fleet Class - according to the American classification). It is being developed by NPP AME (St. Petersburg), and tests are currently underway. The Iskatel UAV must detect and track surface objects at a distance of 5 km using an optical-electronic surveillance system, and underwater objects - using sonar equipment. The target load weight of the boat is up to 500 kg, the range of action is up to 30 km.

"Mayevka". Self-propelled remote-controlled mine finder-destroyer (STIUM) (Snorkeler Class). Developer: OJSC State Research and Production Enterprise Region. The purpose of this UUV is to search and detect anchor, bottom and near-bottom mines using a built-in sector-view sonar. On the basis of the UUV, the development of new mine-resistant UUVs “Alexandrite-ISPUM” is underway.

"Harpsichord". The UUV (Snorkeler Class) created at JSC "TsKB MT "Rubin"" in various modifications has long been in service with the Russian Navy. It is used for research and reconnaissance purposes, surveying and mapping the seabed, and searching for sunken objects. The “harpsichord” looks like a torpedo, about 6 m long and weighing 2.5 tons. The immersion depth is 6 km. The UUV's rechargeable batteries allow it to cover a distance of up to 300 km. There is a modification called “Harpsichord-2R-PM”, created specifically for monitoring the waters of the Arctic Ocean.

"Juno". Another model from JSC “CDB MT “Rubin””. The robotic drone (X-Class) is 2.9 m long, with a diving depth of up to 1 km and an autonomous range of 60 km. Launched from the Juno ship, it is intended for tactical reconnaissance in the sea zone closest to the “home side”.

"Amulet". The UAV (X-Class) was also developed by JSC “TsKB MT “Rubin””. The length of the robot is 1.6 m. The list of tasks includes carrying out search and research operations on the state of the underwater environment (temperature, pressure and speed of sound). The maximum diving depth is about 50 m, the maximum underwater speed is 5.4 km/h, the working range is up to 15 km.

"Obzor-600". The rescue forces of the Russian Black Sea Fleet adopted the UAV (X-Class) created by Tethys-PRO in 2011. The main task of the robot is to explore the seabed and any underwater objects. “Obzor-600” is capable of operating at depths of up to 600 m and reaching speeds of up to 3.5 knots. It is equipped with manipulators that can lift a load weighing up to 20 kg, as well as a sonar that allows it to detect underwater objects at a distance of up to 100 m.

Non-class UUV, which has no analogues in the world, requires a more detailed description. Until recently, the project was called “Status-6”. Poseidon is a fully autonomous UUV, essentially a small, fast, deep-sea stealth nuclear submarine.

The onboard systems and water-jet propulsion are powered by a nuclear reactor with a liquid metal coolant (LCC) with a power of about 8 MW. Reactors with LMC were installed on the K-27 submarine (Project 645 ZhMT) and Project 705/705K Lira submarines, which could reach a submerged speed of 41 knots (76 km/h). Therefore, many experts believe that the Poseidon’s underwater speed is in the range from 55 to 100 knots. At the same time, the robot, changing its speed over a wide range, can make the transition to a range of 10,000 km at depths of up to 1 km. This excludes its detection by the SOSSUS hydroacoustic anti-submarine system deployed in the oceans, which controls the approaches to the US coast.

Experts calculated that Poseidon at a cruising speed of 55 km/h could be detected no further than at a distance of up to 3 km. But detection is only half the battle; not a single existing or promising torpedo from the NATO navies will be able to catch up with the Poseidon underwater. The deepest and fastest European torpedo, the MU90 Hard Kill, launched in pursuit at a speed of 90 km/h, will only be able to pursue it for 10 km.

And these are just the “flowers”, and the “berry” is a megaton-class nuclear warhead that Poseidon can carry. Such a warhead can destroy an aircraft carrier force (ACF), consisting of three attack aircraft carriers, three dozen escort ships and five nuclear submarines. And if it reaches the waters of a large naval base, then the tragedy of Pearl Harbor in December 1941 will be reduced to the level of a mild childish fright...

Today people are asking the question, how many “Poseidons” can there be on nuclear submarines of project 667BDR “Squid” and 667BDRM “Dolphin”, which are designated in reference books as carriers of ultra-small submarines? I answer, it is enough that the aircraft carriers of a potential enemy do not leave their destination bases.

The two main geopolitical players - the USA and Russia - are developing and producing more and more new UAVs and UUVs. In the long term, this may lead to changes in maritime defense doctrines and tactics for conducting naval operations. As long as naval robots depend on carriers, drastic changes should not be expected, but the fact that they have already made changes to the balance of naval forces is becoming an indisputable fact.

Alexey Leonkov, military expert of the Arsenal of the Fatherland magazine

List of abbreviations.

Introduction.

1. Issues of terminology and classification.

2. Historical excursion.

2.1. Development of MRI abroad.

2.2. Development of domestic MRI.

3. Features and prospects of the technologies used.

3.1. Communication and interaction.

3.2. Navigation.

3.3. Propulsors.

4. Use of MRI for military purposes.

5. Application of MRI when working on the shelf.

6. Wireless sensor networks and their application at sea.

7. Communities of interacting robots

8. Marine robotics + augmented reality.

Conclusion.

Literature.

Applications. Appendix 1. “Catalog of domestic and foreign technical regulations.” Appendix 2. “Catalog of domestic and foreign AUVs.”

List of abbreviations.

AUV - autonomous uninhabited underwater vehicle

ROV – remote-controlled uninhabited underwater vehicle

INS – inertial navigation system

GANS - hydroacoustic navigation system

GANS DB – GANS with long wheelbase

GANS KB - GANS with short wheelbase

GANS UKB – GANS with ultra-short wheelbase

UUV - uninhabited underwater vehicle

PPA – transceiver antenna

OPA - manned underwater vehicle

AR (augmented reality) - augmented reality

AUV (autonomous underwater vehicle) - autonomous underwater vehicle

ROV (remotely operated vehicle) - remotely controlled vehicle (moving)

SAUV (sun autonomous underwater vehicle) - solar-powered AUV

UUV (Unmanned Underwater Vehicle) - uninhabited underwater vehicle

USV (Unmanned Surface Vehicle) - uninhabited surface vehicle

UXV (Unmanned Generic Vehicle) - an uninhabited vehicle of a general (any) class

Introduction

If you lost a needle in a haystack as a child, you will find it, at best, by the time you retire. But if you mobilize the inhabitants of the nearest anthill to solve this problem, then the needle will be brought to you in two minutes. Tested more than once. If it was not possible to come to an agreement with the ants, then you can attract students from a technical university who are passionate about robotics. They are quite capable of creating a group of miniature devices equipped with magnetic sensors, capable of moving and interacting with each other. The creation of robots capable of interacting with each other in order to most effectively solve a given problem is a new direction in the development of robotics, called “flock robots,” whose apologists promise a revolution in solving many labor-intensive problems. We will talk about flock robots in the penultimate chapter of our review. By the way, if swarm robots are deprived of the ability to move, then we will move on to another, also promising, but preceding them in time, scientific and practical topic - the topic of wireless sensor networks.

Interesting practical results have already been achieved in this direction. We will present the principles of construction and examples of network implementation in the 6th chapter of the review.

In the meantime, it’s time to remember that our review is devoted to the use of robotics specifically at sea, and not on land or in the sky, i.e. you will have to imagine searching for a needle not in a haystack, but in an algae plantation, which will seem like a more labor-intensive task. Wi-Fi practically does not work in water, the propagation of electromagnetic waves is extremely difficult, and it is difficult to use the optical channel, i.e. issues of communication, interaction, navigation, surveillance, etc. acquire their own, purely maritime specificity. The 3rd chapter of the review is devoted to the features of the implementation of communication, interaction, navigation, propulsors, sensors and manipulators in marine robots.

Modern robotic systems are used in almost all areas of underwater engineering. However, the main areas of their application are: military, work on the extraction and transportation of fuel and raw materials, search and rescue operations and oceanographic research. The features of their use in these areas and examples of application can be found in chapters 4–5 of the review. It is in these areas that the greatest progress has been made in recent years in terms of the use of new technologies for communication and navigation of underwater vehicles, equipping them with new sensors and manipulators, and increasing the efficiency of management and maintenance. The Appendix presents a catalog of modern ROVs and AUVs.

So why don’t we see robots in the fields of the country looking for needles in haystacks? Yes, because no one set such tasks for them. Apparently the needles have stopped getting lost. But seriously speaking, setting tasks and developing scenarios for the use of robotics in solving practical problems, including taking into account the prospects for the development of this area, is the most important organizational task. It is not without reason that in the Pentagon’s plans for the coming years, projects to develop concepts for the use of robotics in the army are given the same importance as projects to develop the robots themselves. Moreover, they have priority because they can provide impetus and determine the direction of the design of robotic systems. We will present our proposals on this issue and other problems in the development of marine robotics (MR) in Russia in the Conclusion to this review.

The exploration of the depths of the World Ocean is a task no less complex and dangerous than the exploration of outer space. And in terms of economic and environmental importance it is even a higher priority. In solving this problem, marine robotics is called upon to play the role of not just a human assistant, but a full-fledged participant, since it should not only make the depths of the ocean more accessible and safe for humans, but shoulder the bulk of the work on their study and development.

1. Issues of terminology and classification.

In the field of marine robotics, a single generally accepted terminology has not yet been developed. Some experts use phrases where the basic word is “robot”, for example: marine robots, marine robotics, robotic complexes or systems, etc. Others try to do without the term “robot”, focusing on more etymologically clear phrases, for example “uninhabited underwater vehicle” (NPA). In this review, we will adhere to the terminology that emerged from the works of M.D. Ageev and his colleagues at the Institute of Marine Technologies of the Far Eastern Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, which he headed from 1988 to 2005, paying tribute to their contribution to the development of domestic marine robotics. These are terms such as “unmanned underwater vehicle” (UUV), “remotely controlled unmanned underwater vehicle” (ROUV), “autonomous unmanned underwater vehicle” (AUV) and a number of others. At the same time, in the text you will also find all sorts of “robotic” terms, so as not to distort the ideas and conclusions of the authors who used them in their works. Be that as it may, we do not see a big contradiction here, because a UUV is just a device operating under water (or on the surface of the sea, or even above the surface of the water - a marine drone), and a robotic complex or system is already a vessel support and m.b. a system of navigation beacons, without which the device cannot do to complete its mission. So the diversity in terminology, we hope, will not confuse anyone. Everything should be clear from the context.

There is also no uniformity in foreign sources on this topic. More often than others, the term ROV (remotely operated vehicle) is used - a remotely controlled vehicle (moving) or instead of vehicle - vessel, i.e. vessel. Abbreviations such as UUV (Unmanned Underwater Vehicle) - uninhabited underwater vehicle, USV (Unmanned Surface Vehicle) - uninhabited surface vehicle, UXV (Unmanned Generic Vehicle) - uninhabited vehicle of a general (any) class, etc. are also used. In this case, the authors allow very loose interpretation of these terms, especially ROV. There are also other terms and abbreviations that are similar in semantics, which we will not focus on now. In any case, you can always use the “List of Abbreviations” section of this review.

Classification.

Classification in any scientific direction is a conceptual issue both in terms of interaction between specialists and in terms of the development of this direction. The diversity of legal acts created in the world makes their strict classification difficult. However, some classification schemes have been proposed that can be relied upon.

Firstly, it is well known that underwater vehicles are divided into inhabited and uninhabited - UAV and UUV. Manned vehicles can be hyperbaric or normobaric (a durable hull protects hydronauts from water pressure). These two subgroups are further divided into autonomous and tethered.

Uninhabited vehicles are primarily divided into remote-controlled and autonomous.

Most often, weight, dimensions, autonomy, mode of movement, presence of buoyancy, working depth, deployment pattern, purpose, functional and design features, cost and some others are used as classification characteristics of marine RTCs (NLA).

Classification according to weight and size characteristics:

• - microPA (PMA), weight (dry) - mini-PA, weight 20–100 kg, cruising range from 0.5 to 4000 nautical miles, operational depth up to 2000 m;
• - small RVs, weight 100–500 kg. Currently, PAs of this class make up 15–20% and are widely used in solving various problems at depths of up to 1500 m;
• - medium RV, weight more than 500 kg, but less than 2000 kg;
• - large RVs, weight > 2000 kg.

Classification according to the characteristics of the shape of the supporting structure:

• - classical shape (cylindrical, conical and spherical);
• - bionic (floating and crawling types);
• - glider (aircraft) shape;
• - with a solar panel on the top of the body (flat forms);
• - crawling UUVs on a tracked base;
• - serpentine shape.

Classification of marine RTK (NPA) according to the degree of autonomy.

An AUV must meet three main conditions of autonomy: mechanical, energy and information.

Mechanical autonomy presupposes the absence of any mechanical connection in the form of a cable, cable or hose connecting the UAV with the carrier vessel or with the bottom station or shore base.

Energy autonomy presupposes the presence on board of the UAV of a power source in the form of, for example, batteries, fuel cells, a nuclear reactor, an internal combustion engine with a closed operating cycle, etc.

Information autonomy of the UUV presupposes the absence of information exchange between the device and the carrier vessel, or the bottom station or coastal base. In this case, the UUV must also have an autonomous inertial navigation system.

Classification of marine RTK (NLA) according to the information principle for the corresponding generation of NLA.

First-generation marine autonomous RTC VN (AUV) operate according to a predetermined rigid unchangeable program. First-generation remotely controlled (RC) UUVs are controlled in an open loop. In these simplest devices, control commands are sent directly to the propulsion system without the use of automatic feedback.

Second-generation AUVs have an extensive sensor system. The second generation of DUNPA assumes the presence of automatic feedback on the state coordinates of the control object: height above the bottom, diving depth, speed, angular coordinates, etc. These next coordinates are compared in the autopilot with the given ones, determined by the operator.

Third-generation AUVs will have elements of artificial intelligence: the ability to independently make simple decisions within the framework of the overall task assigned to them; elements of artificial vision with the ability to automatically recognize simple images; the opportunity for basic self-learning with the addition of one’s own knowledge base. Third generation DUNPAs are controlled by the operator interactively. The supervisory control system already presupposes a certain hierarchy, consisting of an upper level, implemented in the computer of the carrier vessel, and a lower level, implemented on board the underwater module.

Depending on diving depth usually considered: shallow-water RVs with a working diving depth of up to 100 m, RVs for work on the shelf (300–600 m), devices of medium depths (up to 2000 m) and RVs of great and extreme depths (6000 m and more).

Depending on the type of propulsion system It is possible to distinguish between UUVs with a traditional rudder group, UUVs with a propulsion system based on bionic principles, with water-jet propulsion, and UUVs - gliders with a propulsion system that uses changes in trim and buoyancy. In turn, propeller-driven RVs are divided into electric and electro-hydraulic. The features of various propulsors are discussed in section 3.3.

In addition, in a number of works, regulatory documents are divided into inspection and working ones. First of all, this applies to TNLA. Inspection ROVs mean light and medium-sized devices designed for inspection, underwater photography, research using various sensors, and working ROVs mean heavy, weighing up to several tons, ROVs designed to perform work using manipulators and various tools, as well as for lifting cargo. The work provides the following classification table of TNLA.

This classification does not in any way reflect new trends in contactless sensor networks (“smart plankton”) and swarming robots, but this is apparently a matter of the near future. When examples of the implementation of these technologies in real maritime projects appear, then the classification will be able to adapt.

In this review, we pay equal attention to ROVs and AUVs. Each of these types of marine robotics has its own specific field of application, which is directly related to the advantages and disadvantages characteristic of each type. The main advantage of the ROV is that it is connected by cable to the support vessel, i.e. fully supplied with energy and information. It can work underwater for as long as desired, be promptly controlled by an operator on board the carrier vessel, and carry a large load - tools, powerful manipulators, lighting equipment. In fact, ROV can only be classified as robotics with a big stretch; rather, it is a remotely controlled instrumental complex. ROVs perform the largest volume of inspection and search, rescue, repair and construction work. At the same time, rigid attachment to the carrier vessel is also the main disadvantage of ROVs, which does not allow them to perform functions related to autonomous operation, for example, covert reconnaissance, sabotage, penetration into spaces where an external cable would become a hindrance. And a network of sensors or mobile devices for working over large areas cannot be built from ROVs. Therefore, the AUV also has its own rather extensive field of activity. Unfortunately, AUVs have at least two serious disadvantages. This is underwater communications and a limited energy resource, and underwater navigation leaves much to be desired. Scientific work to solve these problems is being carried out quite actively, which will be discussed in the relevant sections of the review, and if they bring practical results, this will give a powerful additional incentive to the development of marine robotics.

2. Historical excursion.

2.1. Development of MRI abroad.

The beginning of the production and use of uninhabited underwater vehicles abroad can be considered the late 50s and early 60s of the last century, when the US Navy seriously took up the development of this area.

Thus, in the early 60s, a very successful ROV model was created, which can be considered the prototype of all modern tethered underwater vehicles. The device was called the Cable-Controlled Underwater Research Vehicle (CURV) and had a tubular frame with four torpedo-shaped buoyancy and a total length of 3.3 m, a width and a height of 1.2 m each. The propulsion system consisted of three 10 hp engines. On board were: a sonar and hydrophone, a TV camera and lamps, as well as a camera for 35 mm film. The CURV was equipped with a 7-function manipulator with a gripper to grasp large cylindrical objects. All drives, including engines, were hydraulic. The diving depth of the CURV was 600 m. Subsequently, modifications CURV II and CURV III were created with a diving depth of up to 6000 m. The CURV and its modifications lifted hundreds of torpedoes from the bottom and participated in search and rescue operations. One of these operations consisted of searching for and lifting a hydrogen bomb from a depth of 869 m in the Palomares area (Spain) in 1966.

In the 70s, Great Britain and France actively joined the creation of uninhabited underwater vehicles, and from the late 70s and especially in the 80s, Germany, Norway, Canada, Japan, Holland, and Sweden actively joined the race. And if initially the production of NPAs was financed by the state, and their use was limited mainly to the military sphere, then already in the 80s the main volume of their production began to fall on commercial companies, and the scope of application spread to the field of business and science. This was due, first of all, to the intensive development of offshore oil and gas fields.

In the 90s, ROVs crossed the depth barrier of 6000 m. The Japanese ROV JAMSTEC Kaiko reached a depth of 10,909 m in the Mariana Trench. The US Navy has begun replacing pilot-controlled rescue systems with modular systems based on unmanned remotely operated vehicles.

The appearance on the market of a wide variety of NPA models has led to an active search for new areas of their application, and this, in turn, has found a response from developers and manufacturers of NPA. Such a reciprocal process, stimulating the development of this direction, is still happening. Currently, there are more than 500 NPA manufacturing companies from a variety of countries operating in the foreign marine robotics market, including even such countries as Iceland, Iran and Croatia.

2.2. Development of domestic MRI.

In our country, the creation of uninhabited underwater vehicles began approximately in the same years as abroad. At the Institute of Oceanology in 1963. development began, and in 1968. ROV “CRAB” and “Manta 0.2” appeared, equipped with a television camera and a manipulator.

Significant contributions to the development of marine robotics at different times were made by such organizations as:

• - Institute of Marine Technology Problems FEB RAS (IPMT FEB RAS);
• - Institute of Oceanology RAS named after. Shirshova;
• - Moscow Higher Technical School named after. Bauman;
• - Institute of Mechanics of Moscow State University;
• - Central Research Institute "Gidropribor";
• - Leningrad Polytechnic Institute;
• - Engineering Center “Glubina”;
• - CJSC Intershelf-STM;
• - State Scientific Center "Yuzhmorgeology";
• - Indel-Partner LLC;
• - Federal State Unitary Enterprise "Oceanological Engineering Design Bureau of the Russian Academy of Sciences".

Currently, Tethys Pro OJSC is actively operating in the Russian market, providing Russian consumers with products from leading foreign manufacturers, providing their localization and technical support.

Institute of Marine Technology Problems, Far Eastern Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences was created in 1988. on the basis of the department of underwater technical means of the Institute of Automated Control of the Far Eastern Scientific Center of the USSR Academy of Sciences.

At different times, the institute created AUVs “Skat”, “Skat-geo”, “L-1”, “L-2”, “MT-88”, “Tiflonus”, “OKRO-6000”, “CR-01A” ", "Harpsichord", small-sized "Pilgrim", solar-powered AUV (SUNPA); ROV series "MAX" (small-sized device with cable communication). In total for the period 1974-2010. More than 20 uninhabited underwater vehicles for various purposes were created.

The devices created at the institute were used in rescue operations, to search for sunken objects, and to examine underwater structures: pipelines, platform supports and mooring structures. A unique operation in the Sargasso Sea to search for and examine the nuclear submarine "K-219", which sank in 1987. at a depth of 5500 m, was the world's first deep-sea operation carried out exclusively by an autonomous unmanned underwater vehicle (L-2). The created robotic complex was used to survey the area where the K-8 nuclear submarine was destroyed in the North Atlantic and to search for a South Korean passenger plane in the area of ​​the island. Sakhalin. In 1989, the L-2 apparatus participated in search and rescue operations in the Norwegian Sea in the area of ​​the K-287 (Komsomolets) nuclear submarine accident.

In 1990 The AUV "MT-88" received an international diploma INTERVENTION/ROV"90 of the first degree in San Diego (USA) for the best work of the year and contribution to the progress of global underwater robotics.

At the Institute of Oceanology, as mentioned above, the first domestic ROVs of the “CRAB” and “Manta” series were created.

At the Moscow Higher Technical School named after. Bauman Research on the creation of underwater equipment began in the late 60s at the SM-7 department. To this day, the departments of “Ocean Engineering” and “Underwater Robots and Vehicles” train specialists in the development of underwater vehicles. At the “Glubina” engineering center, together with teachers and students of the “Underwater Robots and Vehicles” department, the multifunctional ROV “Kalan” was created. By the way, Engineering Center "Glubina" in the early 90s he developed another small-sized inspection ROV “Belyok”.

Central Research Institute "Gidropribor" was noted for the development of ROV “TPA-150”, “TPA-200” and “Rapan”. However, during operation at Rapana, a number of shortcomings were identified and its use was discontinued.

In 1990 Leningrad company ZAO appeared on the market "Intershelf-STM" with its developments of ROVs, which were subsequently equipped with the Ecopatrol vessels. In 1998 This organization, commissioned by Exxon, carried out work to study large areas of the seabed as part of a project to develop offshore oil and gas fields.

State Scientific Center "Yuzhmorgeology" is based on the Black Sea coast, 40 km from Novorossiysk. This organization is the developer and owner of three ROVs “RT-1000 PLI”, “PTM 500” and “PT 6000M”.

With the help of these devices, a whole range of underwater technical work was carried out: searching for burial sites of chemical and bacteriological weapons in the Baltic Sea, inspecting oil pipelines, inspecting the outlet manifolds of treatment facilities and pier facilities of a port in the Black Sea, working on sunken objects - "Admiral Nakhimov" and APRK "Kursk", inspection of the coastal part of the underwater pipeline "Blue Stream", search and recovery of black boxes of the Airbus A-320, which crashed near Sochi and a number of other works.

LLC "Indel-Partner", formed in 2001. is well known thanks to its miniature and inexpensive ($3-7 thousand) inspection-class ROVs of the GNOM and Obzor series. These devices are widely used for underwater filming, observing fish and bottom inhabitants, inspecting sunken ships and searching for various objects. GNOMs were purchased and successfully operated by the services of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of the Russian Federation, the Prosecutor General's Office of the Russian Federation, Rosenergoatom, large oil and gas companies, divers and divers.

Federal State Unitary Enterprise "Oceanological Engineering Design Bureau RAS"- another well-known manufacturer of various underwater equipment, in 2006. developed and produced a multi-purpose working class ROV ROSUB 6000 with a diving depth of up to 6000 m. Vehicle weight -2500 kg, payload -150 kg.

OJSC Tethys Pro. In 2010, the rescue forces of the Russian Black Sea Fleet adopted a new remote-controlled autonomous uninhabited underwater vehicle, Obzor-600, created by the Russian company Tethys-PRO. Previously, the Russian fleet used British-made AUVs. We are talking about Tiger and Pantera+ devices manufactured by Seaeye Marine. "Obzor-600" belongs to the class of small AUVs and is capable of operating at a depth of up to 600 meters. The weight of the device is 15 kilograms. "Obzor-600" is equipped with manipulators that allow you to grasp cargo weighing up to 20 kilograms. Due to its small size, the AUV can penetrate complex or narrow structures underwater.

3. Features and prospects of the technologies used.

3.1. Communication and interaction.

Obviously, this section will focus exclusively on communication and interaction of autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs), since ROVs are connected to the support vessel via cable, and surface vehicles are connected via radio. Due to the fact that electromagnetic waves in water quickly attenuate, communication via a radio channel in the HF and VHF range is partially possible only at periscope depth. Underwater robots designed to work at depth are not interested in this. Research conducted primarily in the interests of the military submarine fleet has shown that of the physical fields known in nature, the ones of greatest interest for solving the problem of communication with underwater objects are:

• - acoustic waves;
• - electromagnetic fields in the range of ultra-low frequencies (ELF) and extremely low frequencies (ELF), sometimes called extremely low frequencies (ELF);
• - seismic waves;
• - optical (laser) radiation (in the blue-green range);
• - neutrino beams and gravitational fields.

It was decided that backup communication with submarines located underwater anywhere in the world's oceans is most feasible using antennas emitting ultra-long waves. Many kilometers of antennas were built in the USA, in the Great Lakes region and here on the Kola Peninsula.

In the ELF range, it is possible to send a one-way message and receive it anywhere in the ocean, but... one short word for... 5-20 minutes. It is clear that such one-way communication can only be used as a backup, for transmitting, for example, an emergency command to “surface and contact the center in any available way.”

Therefore, today the only way to communicate with the surface or with other underwater vehicles is acoustic communication in the low-frequency range. An example is the LinkQuest UWM 4000 acoustic receiving/transmitting modem for underwater communications from LinkQuest.

Today, this is one of the most advanced and sought-after products, thanks to: an improved modulation scheme to improve the signal-to-noise ratio; stabilization of the communication channel to combat multiple signal reflections; error correction coding; automatically adapting transmission speed to cope with changing noise conditions in the environment.

However, even at such a speed it is impossible to transmit significant amounts of information. You can only send commands or exchange small files. To transmit a photo or video image, or pump an array of accumulated data to the processing center, the AUV must surface and use radio or satellite communications. For this purpose, most modern devices (except for specialized bottom network sensors) have the necessary communication means on board.

For example, in the Gavia AUV the communication and control module has the following capabilities:

• - wireless local area network
• (Wi-Fi IEEE 802.11g) range - 300m (optimal range - 150 m);
• - satellite communication: Iridium;
• - hydroacoustic communication system for receiving system status messages, range - 1200 m;
• - data retrieval: wired LAN (Ethernet) or wireless LAN Wi-Fi.

Underwater optical communications.

Compared to air, water is opaque to most of the electromagnetic wave spectrum, with the exception of the visible range. Moreover, in the clearest waters, light penetrates only a few hundred meters deep. Therefore, acoustic communication is currently used underwater. Acoustic systems transmit information over fairly long distances, but still lag in transmission time due to the relatively low speed of sound propagation in water.

Scientists and engineers from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) have developed an optical information transmission system that is combined with an existing acoustic system. This method will allow you to transmit data at speeds of up to 10-20 megabits per second over a distance of 100 meters, using a low-power battery and an inexpensive receiver and transmitter. The invention will allow underwater vehicles equipped with all the necessary devices to transmit instant messages and video to the surface of the water in real time. The company's report was presented on February 23, 2010 at the Ocean Sciences Meeting in Portland Ore. When the ship goes to such a depth that the optical system no longer works, acoustics come into play.

Material about the test results of this technology appeared on the WHOI website only in July 2012. Apparently, the creators took so long to resolve some commercial or copyright issues. It was reported that the optical modem used blue light because... other light waves propagate less well in water, and video images from the bottom of the sea have been transmitted in “near real time” mode over a distance of up to 200 meters. It was also reported that the creators of the technology formed an alliance with Sonardyne to commercially promote their product, which they called BlueComm.

For your reference, here is some basic information about wireless optical communications in the air.

Wireless optics technology (Free Space Optics - FSO) has been known for a long time: the first experiments on data transmission using wireless optical devices were carried out more than 30 years ago. However, its rapid development began in the early 1990s. with the advent of broadband data networks. The first systems produced by A.T. Schindler, Jolt and SilCom provided data transmission over distances of up to 500 m and used infrared semiconductor diodes. The progress of such systems was hampered mainly due to the lack of reliable, powerful and “rapid-firing” radiation sources.

Currently, such sources have appeared. Modern FSO technology supports connections up to OS-48 level (2.5 Gbps) with a maximum range of up to 10 km, and some manufacturers claim data transfer rates of up to 10 Gbps and distances of up to 50 km. At the same time, the real maximum range is influenced by the availability of the channel, that is, the percentage of time when the channel is operational.

The data rates provided by FSO systems are approximately the same as those of fiber optic networks, making them most popular in last-mile broadband applications. Wireless optical systems use the infrared radiation range from 400 to 1400 nm.

The ideology of constructing wireless optics systems is based on the fact that the optical communication channel imitates a piece of cable. This approach does not require additional communication protocols or their modification

Optical systems have certain characteristics that make them quite popular on the market:

The structure of all infrared transmission systems is almost the same: they consist of an interface module, an emitter modulator, transmitter and receiver optical systems, a receiver demodulator and a receiver interface unit. Depending on the type of optical emitters used, a distinction is made between laser and semiconductor infrared diode systems, which have different speeds and transmission ranges. The former provide a transmission range of up to 15 km with speeds of up to 155 Mbit/s (commercial systems) or up to 10 Gbit/s (experimental systems). It should be noted that as the requirements for channel quality become more stringent, the communication range decreases. The latter provide a significantly shorter transmission range, although as technology develops, the range and speed of communication increase. .

3.2. Navigation aids.

The history of maritime navigation goes back centuries. Even ancient sailors navigated by shore markers, and far from the coast - by the stars. Yes, you can find your way home this way, but for search work, which requires precise positioning of both the search object on the bottom of the sea and your own coordinates under water, fundamentally different navigation methods are needed. Despite technological progress, as recently as half a century ago, navigation aids did not provide the necessary accuracy of positioning under water. From the memoirs of American search specialists, we know about the difficulties they encountered in 1963, when the American submarine Thresher sank at a depth of 2560 m, and in 1966 a hydrogen bomb was lost off the coast of Spain. The accuracy of underwater positioning could not provide an accurate re-entry to the sunken object. It was these and similar incidents that led to active research and development of hydroacoustic positioning methods. Subsequently, the advent of satellite navigation systems further enhanced the capabilities of navigation at sea.

Currently, the navigation complexes of the UUV include:

• - satellite systems;
• - hydroacoustic;
• - on-board autonomous.

Satellite navigation systems GLONASS and GPS (+ in the future Galileo) provide the ability to quickly and highly accurately determine the coordinates of a marine object, synchronize the relative positions of various objects in space, determine the speed and direction of movement of objects in real time. Taking into account wide-area additions, such as the American WAAS, the European EGNOS, the Japanese MSAS, the positioning accuracy on the sea surface can reach 1-2 m. However, when the UUV is submerged under water, communication with the satellite is terminated. Then the position of the UUV is determined by the “reckoning” method using onboard navigation aids (compass, speed sensors, depth sensor, gyroscopes), or using hydroacoustic positioning.

Hydroacoustic navigation system positioning system (GANS) is a system consisting of several stationary transmitting hydroacoustic beacons installed on the seabed and the accompanying vessel, a transponder beacon on the UUV and an information processing unit. However, other methods of placing beacons are also used. Depending on this, there are GANS with a long base (GANS DB), GANS with a short base (GANS KB), GANS with an ultra-short base (GANS UKB), their combinations and combinations with satellite navigation.

GANS DB They use several beacons (transponders) with acoustic transceivers installed on them. These beacons, located in locations with known geographic coordinates, emit sound waves, allowing UUVs to determine their distance. For the system to operate in a given area, it is necessary to use at least three acoustic beacons. The UAV performs triangulation to calculate its own position relative to them. To build a GANS DB, three or more beacons are used, permanently installed on the seabed, at a distance of approximately 500 meters from each other. The advantages of such systems are high accuracy of coordinate determination (submeter accuracy), no influence of sea waves on the accuracy, and unlimited depth of use. Disadvantages are the need to accurately position the beacons on the seabed, and the need to raise them upon completion of work. The main application of GANS DB is long-term work on the inspection of any underwater objects, the construction and operation of oil production platforms, and the laying of pipelines.

GANS UKB works on the principle of determining the coordinates of the transponder beacon by distance and angle. The range of such systems reaches up to 4000 m. Typically, when working up to 1000 m, the accuracy of determining coordinates is no worse than 10 m. This is enough to determine the location of the RV, but is not enough to carry out complex underwater drilling or construction work.

The advantages of such systems include their relatively low cost and mobility. They can be used on almost any vessel, even a rubber boat, by attaching a transceiver antenna (RPA) to a rod. The disadvantages include the high degree of influence of pitching on the accuracy and performance of the system.

An example of GANS UKB is GANS TrackLink 1500 from the American company LinkQuest, which is a portable portable system capable of operating from any type of carrier vessels and small boats. Several dozen receiving and transmitting elements are structurally combined in a single housing, which can be lowered into the water directly from the carrier vessel. This design, on the one hand, makes it possible to achieve high positioning accuracy, and on the other hand, to reduce the weight and dimensions of the system and the time it takes to prepare it for work, which is important when conducting search and rescue operations. When performing underwater work that requires high-precision positioning, for example, laying and inspecting pipelines, constructing hydraulic structures and oil platforms, etc., it is recommended to permanently mount the PPU on a special rod for launching from the side or mount a retractable rod in the ship’s hull. This method of fastening ensures a stable position of the RPU relative to the carrier vessel, especially when operating in strong waves and currents.

For installation on underwater objects, the GANS includes various types of transponder beacons, unified in terms of weight and dimensions and continuous operation time. The beacons are powered from built-in batteries or from the on-board network of underwater objects. The use of modern technologies in the production of power batteries ensures long-term operation of transponder beacons in active mode. If there are no request signals from the PPA for a long time, the responding beacon automatically goes into standby mode to save battery life. This operating algorithm ensures long-term (up to several months) presence of the transponder beacon under water.

All signals from the PPA are processed in the surface control and display unit, which is a desktop computer or laptop. Unlike most similar systems offered on the market, the data cable from the PPA is connected directly to the serial port of the computer (laptop). Mathematical and graphical data processing is carried out using special software. The monitor screen displays in real time the current coordinates of underwater objects, parameters and trajectory of their movement relative to the carrier vessel. The software has the ability to additionally process and display data from the GPS navigation system and an external pitch sensor. These devices are connected to a laptop via a serial port or interface unit.

The manufacturing company LinkQuest offers a special modification of GANS TrackLink 1500LC for working with miniature remote-controlled underwater vehicles of the SeaBotics type. Such a system has a special hydroacoustic antenna with protection from surface noise, capable of operating from small boats or boats, and a small transponder beacon (weight in water less than 200 g). The technical capabilities of the system allow positioning of the underwater vehicle over the entire range of operating depths.

The GANS TrackLink 1500 kit includes:

• hydroacoustic antenna with a cable of 20 meters;
• transponder beacon (depending on the type of underwater object) with a charger;
• laptop with installed software;
• transport case;
• spare parts kit.

Additionally can be supplied:

• up to 8 responding beacons;
• GPS navigation system (DGPS);
• external pitch sensor.

Systems with a short base (GANS KB) have several hydrophones spaced apart from each other, located in the lower part of the carrier vessel. The processing unit, using hydroacoustic distance signals from the transponder beacon, provides the coordinates of the underwater object in real time. The advantages of such a system are mobility and fairly high accuracy (about a meter). The working depth is limited to 1000 m. Disadvantages - requirements for the minimum length of the carrier vessel. The need for precise calibration of the system, greater sensitivity to sea waves. Recently, these systems have been replaced by simpler and more advanced UCB systems.

In recent years, a fundamentally new hybrid system has appeared on the market of positioning systems, which uses the principles of constructing GANS DB and KB type with simultaneous comparison of coordinates using signals from DGPS (differential GPS). Let's look at such a system as an example.

Hydroacoustic positioning system "GIB"(from the English GPS Intelligent Buoys) of the French company ACSA is designed to determine the current coordinates of underwater objects with great accuracy. The system is based on the principle of determining the coordinates of an underwater object relative to several surface floating buoys, the location of which in turn is determined using the global positioning system GPS or GLONASS. The floating buoy consists of a sonar receiver (hydrophone) and a GPS receiver. A hydroacoustic beacon with a certain signal frequency is installed on the underwater vehicle. Each buoy uses a hydrophone to determine the bearing and distance to the hydroacoustic beacon. At the same time, in strict time synchronization, the received values ​​are assigned to the current geographic coordinates of the buoy. All received data is sent in real time via radio modem to a tracking post located on board the ship or on shore. Special software, using mathematical processing, calculates the real geographical coordinates of an underwater object, the speed and direction of its movement. All initial and calculated parameters are saved for subsequent processing; at the same time, the location and trajectory of the underwater object or objects, carrier vessel and floating buoys are displayed on the monitor screen of the tracking post. Parameters and trajectories of movement can be displayed either in relative coordinates, for example, relative to the carrier vessel, or in absolute geographic coordinates, plotted directly on an electronic map of the underwater work area. When performing work to detect and raise fragments of sunken objects, hydrophones installed on buoys also determine the bearing and distance to the hydroacoustic beacon and the sunken object. The coordinates and depth of the beacon are displayed on the electronic map of the tracking post, and the operator can direct underwater vehicles or divers to the object, guided by the data displayed on the monitor. - http://www.bnti.ru/des.asp?itm=3469HYPERLINK "http://www.bnti.ru/des.asp?itm=3469&tbl=02.04"&HYPERLINK "http://www.bnti.ru /des.asp?itm=3469&tbl=02.04"tbl=02.04

Due to its mobility, high deployment speed and undemanding type of support vessel, such a system is ideal for rescue and search operations. A special module attached to this system allows you to take direction finding of acoustic signals from the black boxes of crashed aircraft or helicopters and guide divers or underwater vehicles to them.

Onboard autonomous navigation aids include: navigation and flight sensors (depth gauge, magnetic and gyroscopic compasses, roll and trim sensors, relative and absolute speed meters - induction and Doppler logs, angular velocity sensors) and an inertial navigation system (INS), built on the basis of accelerometers and laser or fiber optic gyroscopes. The ANN measures the movements and accelerations of the RV along three axes and generates data to determine its geographic coordinates, angular orientation, linear and angular velocities.

In conclusion, let's give an example navigation system of an autonomous uninhabited underwater vehicle (AUV) GAVIA. The navigation complex consists of onboard, hydroacoustic, and satellite navigation systems:

- DGPS receiver with WAAS/EGNOS corrections

- 3-axis induction compass, 360° orientation sensor, acceleration sensors

- ANN with Doppler lag

- Hydroacoustic navigation system with long and ultra-short wheelbase.

The onboard system is an integrated Doppler-inertial system consisting of a high-precision strapdown inertial navigation system (INS) with laser gyroscopes. The ANN is corrected by Doppler log data, which measures the speed of the vehicle over the ground or relative to the water.

Using the ground height data provided by the Doppler log allows the AUV to maintain the depths required to perform SSS or photographic surveys. A DGPS receiver is used to obtain surface position. The hydroacoustic navigation system ensures the identification of an AUV with an installed transponder beacon in relation to the transceiver antenna, or in relation to beacons installed on the bottom, emitting signals into the environment.

In the coming years, in our opinion, it is quite likely that a new navigation method based on the use of augmented reality technology. Tools that implement this method can be very effective in positioning AUVs in closed spaces, such as the interior of sunken ships, pipelines, swimming pools, as well as in complex bottom topography, crevices, fjords, and harbors. You can read about this method in section 8. “Marine robotics + additional. reality".

Article "07/20/2013. Development of marine robotics in Russia and abroad" You can discuss on

Recently, the American company Leidos, together with the Pentagon's Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, tested the Sea Hunter trimaran robot of the ACTUV project. The main task of the device after being put into service will be to hunt for enemy submarines, but it will also be used to deliver provisions and in reconnaissance operations. Many have already heard about land robots and drones created in the interests of the air force. We decided to figure out what kind of devices the military will use at sea in the next few years.

Marine robots can be used to solve a variety of tasks, and the military has compiled a list of them that is far from complete. In particular, the naval commands of many countries have already determined that marine robots can be useful for reconnaissance, bottom mapping, searching for mines, patrolling entrances to naval bases, detecting and tracking ships, hunting submarines, relaying signals, refueling aircraft and striking ground and sea targets. To perform such tasks, several classes of marine robots are being developed today.

Conventionally, marine robots can be divided into four large classes: deck-based, surface-based, underwater and hybrid. Deck-based vehicles include various types of drones launched from the deck of a ship, surface vehicles include robots capable of moving through water, and underwater vehicles include autonomous ships designed to operate underwater. Hybrid marine robots are commonly called devices that can function equally effectively in several environments, for example, in the air and on water or in air and under water. Surface and underwater vehicles have been used by the military, and not only by them, for several years.

Patrol robot boats have been used by the Israeli Navy for the past five years, and underwater robots, also called autonomous uninhabited underwater vehicles, are part of several dozen navies, including Russia, the United States, Sweden, the Netherlands, China, Japan and both Koreas . Underwater robots are by far the most common because their development, production and operation are relatively simple and significantly simpler compared to other classes of marine robots. The fact is that most underwater vehicles are “tied” to the ship by a cable, control cable and power supply and cannot move long distances from the carrier.

Flying carrier-based drones requires compliance with many difficult conditions. For example, controlling the combined air traffic of manned and unmanned aircraft, increasing the accuracy of instrumentation for landing on the oscillating deck of a ship, protecting delicate electronics from the aggressive sea environment and ensuring structural strength for landing on a ship during heavy rolling. Surface robots, especially those that must operate in shipping areas and at great distances from the coast, must receive information about other ships and have good seaworthiness, that is, the ability to swim in rough seas.

Deck-based drones

Since the mid-2000s, the American company Northrop Grumman has commissioned the US Navy to develop a technology demonstrator for the X-47B UCAS-D carrier-based unmanned aerial vehicle. A little less than two billion dollars were spent on the development program, production of two experimental devices and their testing. The X-47B made its first flight in 2011, and its first takeoff from the deck of an aircraft carrier in 2013. That same year, a drone made the first autonomous landing on an aircraft carrier. The device was also tested for its ability to take off in tandem with a manned aircraft, fly at night and refuel other aircraft.

In general, the X-47B has been used by the military to evaluate the potential role of large drones in the fleet. In particular, they talked about reconnaissance, striking enemy positions, refueling other vehicles, and even the use of laser weapons. The X-47B jet is 11.63 meters long, 3.1 meters high, and has a wingspan of 18.93 meters. The drone can reach speeds of up to 1035 kilometers per hour and fly over a distance of up to four thousand kilometers. It is equipped with two internal bomb bays for suspended weapons with a total mass of up to two tons, although it has never been tested for the use of missiles or bombs.

In early February, the US Navy said that it did not need an attack carrier-based drone, since multi-role fighters could handle the bombing of ground targets faster and better. At the same time, a deck-based vehicle will still be developed, but it will be engaged in reconnaissance and refueling of fighters in the air. The creation of the drone will be carried out within the framework of the CBARS project. In service, the drone will be designated MQ-25 Stingray. The winner of the competition for the development of a carrier-based tanker drone will be named in mid-2018, and the military expects to receive the first production device by 2021.

When creating the X-47B, designers had to solve several problems, the simplest of which were protecting the aircraft from corrosion in humid and salty air and developing a compact but durable design with a folding wing, durable landing gear and landing hook. Extremely difficult tasks included maneuvering a drone on the busy deck of an aircraft carrier. This process was partly automated, and partly transferred to the take-off and landing operator. This man received a small tablet on his hand, with which, by sliding his finger across the screen, he could control the movement of the X-47B on the deck before takeoff and after landing.

In order for a carrier-based drone to take off from and land on an aircraft carrier, the ship had to be modernized by installing instrumental landing systems. Manned aircraft land based on voice guidance from the carrier's air traffic operator, commands from the landing operator, and visual data including optical glide path indicator readings. None of this is suitable for a drone. He must receive landing data in digital, secure form. To be able to use the X-47B on aircraft carriers, the developers had to combine an understandable “human” landing system and an incomprehensible “unmanned” one.

Meanwhile, RQ-21A Blackjack drones are already being actively used on American ships. They are US Marines. The device is equipped with a small catapult that does not take up much space on the deck of the ship. The drone is used for intelligence, reconnaissance and surveillance. Blackjack is 2.5 meters long and has a wingspan of 4.9 meters. The device can reach speeds of up to 138 kilometers per hour and stay in the air for up to 16 hours. The drone is launched using a pneumatic catapult, and landing is done using an air arrestor. In this case, it is a rod with a cable, to which the device clings with the wing.

Surface robots

At the end of July 2016, the American company Leidos, together with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) of the Pentagon, carried out sea trials of the Sea Hunter submarine hunter robot. Its development is carried out within the framework of the ACTUV program. The tests were considered successful. The device is built according to the trimaran design, that is, a vessel with three parallel hulls connected to each other at the top. The diesel-electric robot is 40 meters long and has a total displacement of 131.5 tons. The trimaran can reach speeds of up to 27 knots and has a range of ten thousand miles.

Sea Hunter tests have been carried out since last spring. It is equipped with various navigation equipment and sonars. The robot's main task will be to detect and pursue submarines, but the robot will also be used to deliver provisions. In addition, he will be periodically deployed on reconnaissance missions. In this case, the device will operate in completely autonomous mode. The military intends to use such robots primarily to search for “quiet” diesel-electric submarines. By the way, according to unconfirmed reports, during testing the robot was able to detect a submarine half a mile away.

The Sea Hunter design, with full displacement, provides for the possibility of reliable operation in sea conditions up to five (wave height from 2.5 to 5 meters) and the survival of the device in sea conditions up to seven (wave height from six to nine meters). Other technical details about the surface robot are classified. Its tests will be carried out until the end of this year, after which the robot will enter service with the US Navy. The latter believe that robots like the Sea Hunter will significantly reduce the cost of detecting enemy submarines, since there will be no need to use expensive special ships.

Meanwhile, the surface robot of the ACTUV project will not be the first device of this class used by the military. Over the past five years, Israel has been armed with robotic patrol boats that are used to control the country's territorial waters. These are small boats equipped with sonar and radar to detect surface ships and submarines at short distances. The boats are also armed with 7.62 and 12.7 mm machine guns and electronic warfare systems. In 2017, the Israeli Navy will introduce new, faster Shomer Hayam (“Defender”) robotic patrol boats into service.

At the beginning of February 2016, the Israeli company Elbit Systems prototyped the Seagull robot, which will be used to search for enemy submarines and mines. The robot is equipped with a set of sonars that allow it to effectively detect large and small underwater objects. Seagull, made in a 12-meter-long boat hull, is capable of operating autonomously for four days, and its range is about one hundred kilometers. It is equipped with two engines that allow it to reach speeds of up to 32 knots. Seagull can carry a payload of up to 2.3 tons.

When developing the submarine and mine search system, Elbit Systems used data on 135 nuclear submarines, 315 diesel-electric submarines and submarines with air-independent power plants, as well as several hundred mini-submarines and underwater vehicles. 50 percent of the ships and devices that ended up in the base do not belong to NATO member countries. The cost of one autonomous complex is estimated at $220 million. According to Elbit Systems, two autonomous Seagull complexes can replace one frigate in the naval forces when performing anti-submarine operations.

In addition to Israel, Germany also has surface robots. In mid-February of this year, the German Navy launched the ARCIMS robot, designed to search and clear mines, detect submarines, conduct electronic warfare and protect naval bases. This autonomous boat, developed by the German company Atlas ElektroniK, is 11 meters long. It can carry a payload weighing up to four tons. The boat has an impact-resistant hull and a shallow draft. Thanks to two engines, the robotic complex can reach speeds of up to 40 knots.

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Underwater robots

Underwater robots were the first to appear in the fleet, almost immediately after they began to be used for research purposes. In 1957, scientists at the University of Washington Applied Physics Laboratory first used the underwater robot SPURV to study the propagation of sound underwater and record the noise of submarines. In the 1960s, the USSR began using underwater robots to explore the bottom. During these same years, autonomous uninhabited underwater vehicles began to enter the fleet. The first such robots had several motors for moving underwater, simple manipulators and television cameras.

Today, underwater robots are used by the military in a wide variety of operations: for reconnaissance, searching and clearing mines, searching for submarines, inspecting underwater structures, mapping the bottom, providing communications between ships and submarines, and delivering cargo. In October 2015, the Russian Navy received the Marlin-350 underwater robots, developed by the St. Petersburg company Tethys Pro. The military will use the robots in search and rescue operations, including inspecting damaged submarines, as well as for installing sonar markers and lifting various objects from the bottom.

The new underwater robot is designed to search for various objects and inspect the bottom at a depth of up to 350 meters. The robot is equipped with six thrusters. With a length of 84 centimeters, a width of 59 centimeters and a height of 37 centimeters, the mass of the Marlin-350 is 50 kilograms. The device can be equipped with an all-round sonar, multibeam sonar, altimeter, video cameras and lighting devices, as well as various communications equipment. In the interests of the fleet, the Concept-M reconnaissance underwater robot, capable of diving to a depth of up to a thousand meters, is also being tested.

In mid-March of this year, the Krylov Scientific Center launched a new method of patrolling water areas. For this it is planned to use underwater robots, and to determine the exact coordinates of underwater objects - jet sonobuoys. It is assumed that the underwater robot will patrol along a predetermined route. If he detects any movement in his area of ​​​​responsibility, he will contact the nearest ships or coastal base. They, in turn, will launch jet sonobuoys across the patrol area (they are launched like missiles, and once in the water they emit a hydroacoustic signal, by the reflection of which the location of the submarine is determined). Such buoys will already determine the exact location of the detected object.

Meanwhile, the Swedish company Saab has a new autonomous uninhabited underwater vehicle, the Sea Wasp, designed to search, move and neutralize improvised explosive devices. The new robot is based on Seaeye, a line of commercial underwater remotely operated vehicles. Sea Wasp, equipped with two electric motors with a power of five kilowatts each, can reach speeds of up to eight knots. It also has six shunting motors producing 400 watts each. Sea Wasp can use a manipulator to move mines.

In March of this year, Boeing launched a large-capacity underwater robot, the Echo Voyager, 15.5 meters long. This device is equipped with a collision avoidance system and can move underwater completely autonomously: special sonars are responsible for detecting obstacles, and the computer calculates the evasion route. Echo Voyager received a rechargeable energy system, the details of which were not specified. The robot can collect various data, including bottom mapping, and transmit it to the operator. Echo Voyager does not require a dedicated support vessel to maintain it, like other underwater robots.

Christopher P. Cavas/Defense News

Hybrid robots

Marine robots capable of operating in multiple environments have emerged relatively recently. It is believed that thanks to such devices, the military will be able to save their budgets, since they will not need to fork out money for different robots capable of, say, flying and swimming, but instead buy one that can do both. For the past four years, the US Navy's Officer Development School has been working on the Aqua-Quad, a quadcopter capable of landing and taking off from water. The device runs on solar energy and uses it to recharge the batteries. The drone can be equipped with a sonar system capable of detecting submarines.

Development of Aqua-Quad is not yet complete. The first trial tests of the device took place last fall. The drone is built according to a four-beam design with electric motors with propellers located at the ends of the beams. These propellers, each with a diameter of 360 millimeters, are enclosed in fairings. In addition, the entire apparatus is also enclosed in a thin ring with a diameter of one meter. Between the beams there are 20 solar panels. The mass of the device is about three kilograms. The drone is equipped with a battery, using the energy of which it flies. The Aqua-Quad's flight duration is approximately 25 minutes.

In turn, the US Navy Research Laboratory is developing two types of drones - Blackwing and Sea Robin. The devices have been undergoing testing since 2013. These drones are notable because they can be launched from submarines. They are placed in special containers for a standard 533 mm torpedo tube. After launch and ascent, the container opens and the drone takes off vertically. After this, it can conduct reconnaissance of the sea surface, transmitting data in real time, or act as a signal repeater. Having worked, such drones will land on the water or be “caught” by aerial arresters of ships.

In February of this year, the Singaporean company ST Engineering launched an aircraft-type unmanned aerial vehicle capable of flying, landing on water and even swimming underwater. This drone, capable of operating effectively in two environments, is called UHV (Unmanned Hybrid Vehicle, unmanned hybrid vehicle). The UHV weighs 25 kilograms. It can stay in the air for up to 20-25 minutes. The UHV has one propeller and two water propellers. When landing on a water surface, the propeller blades fold and water propulsion is used to propel the drone.

In submerged mode, the UHV can travel at speeds of up to four to five knots. The on-board computer of the drone is entirely responsible for transferring control systems from one environment to another. The developers believe that the device will be useful to the military for conducting reconnaissance and searching for underwater mines. A similar project was launched last year by the Center for Unmanned Systems at the Georgia Institute of Technology. He developed the GTQ-Cormorant dual-medium quadcopter. The drone is capable of diving to a given depth and swimming underwater, using propellers as propellers. The project is funded by the US Naval Research Office.

But DARPA is developing special hybrid robots that will be used by the military as caches. It is assumed that such devices, the development of which has been ongoing since 2013, loaded with fuel, ammunition or small reconnaissance drones, will be released from the ship and sink to the bottom. There they will switch to sleep mode, in which they can function for several years. If necessary, the ship will be able to send an acoustic signal from the surface to the bottom, which will wake up the robot and it will rise to the surface, swim up to the ship and the sailors will be able to pick up their stash from it.

Underwater storage facilities will have to withstand pressures of more than 40 megapascals, since the military plans to install them at great depths, where they will be inaccessible to either amateur divers or submarines of a potential enemy. In particular, the installation depth of storage facilities will reach four kilometers. For comparison, strategic submarines can dive to a depth of 400-500 meters. Technical details about hybrid robot caches are classified. The US military is expected to receive the first such devices for testing in the second half of 2017.

It is impossible to talk about all the marine robots that have already been put into service and those that are still being developed within the framework of one material - each class of such devices already has at least a dozen different names. In addition to military marine robots, civilian vehicles are also being actively developed, which the developers intend to use for a variety of purposes: from transporting passengers and cargo to weather monitoring and studying hurricanes, from underwater research and monitoring communication lines to eliminating the consequences of man-made disasters and rescuing passengers of emergency ships. There will always be work for robots at sea.

Vasily Sychev

Underwater combat robots and nuclear weapons delivery vehicles

With the advent of unmanned aerial reconnaissance aircraft, unmanned strike systems began to develop. The development of autonomous underwater systems of robots, stations and torpedoes is following the same path.

Military expert Dmitry Litovkin said that the Ministry of Defense is actively implementing: “Naval robots are being introduced into the troops along with ground and air robots. Now the main task of underwater vehicles is reconnaissance and transmission of signals for striking identified targets.”

Central Design Bureau "Rubin" has developed a concept design for the robotic complex "Surrogat" for the Russian Navy, TASS reports. As Igor Vilnit, general director of the Rubin Central Design Bureau, said, the length of the “uncrewed” boat is 17 meters, and the displacement is about 40 tons. The relatively large size and the ability to carry towed antennas for various purposes will make it possible to realistically reproduce the physical fields of a submarine, thereby simulating the presence of a real UAV. The new device also provides terrain mapping and reconnaissance functions.

The new device will reduce the cost of exercises that the Navy conducts with combat submarines, and will also make it possible to more effectively carry out disinformation activities against a potential enemy. It is assumed that the device will be able to cover 600 miles (1.1 thousand kilometers) at a speed of 5 knots (9 km/h). The modular design of the drone will allow you to change its functionality: “Surrogate” will be able to imitate both a non-nuclear and nuclear submarine. The maximum speed of the robot should exceed 24 knots (44 km/h), and the maximum diving depth will be 600 meters. The Navy plans to purchase such equipment in large quantities.

"Surrogate" continues the line of robots, among which the product "Harpsichord" has proven itself well.

The Harpsichord apparatus of various modifications has been in service with the Navy for more than five years and is used for research and reconnaissance purposes, including surveying and mapping the seabed, and searching for sunken objects.

This complex looks like a torpedo. The length of the Harpsichord-1R is 5.8 meters, its weight in the air is 2.5 tons, and its diving depth is 6 thousand meters. The robot's batteries make it possible to cover a distance of up to 300 kilometers without using additional resources, and with the use of optional power sources, increase this distance several times.

In the coming months, tests of the Harpsichord-2R-PM robot, which is much more powerful than the previous model (length - 6.5 meters, weight - 3.7 tons), will be completed. One of the specific goals of the product is to provide control of the waters of the Arctic Ocean, where the average depth is 1.2 thousand meters.

Robot drone "Juno". Photo by Central Clinical Hospital "Rubin"

The lightweight model of the Rubin Central Design Bureau line is the Juno robot drone with a diving depth of up to 1 thousand meters and a range of 50-60 kilometers. "Juno" is intended for operational reconnaissance in the sea zone closest to the ship, therefore it is much more compact and lighter (length - 2.9 meters, weight - 82 kg).

“It is extremely important to monitor the condition of the seabed”

– says Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Missile and Artillery Sciences Konstantin Sivkov. According to him, hydroacoustic equipment is subject to interference and does not always accurately reflect changes in the topography of the seabed. This may cause problems with vessel traffic or damage. Sivkov is confident that autonomous marine systems will allow solving a wide range of problems. “Especially in areas that pose a threat to our forces, in enemy anti-submarine defense zones,” the analyst added.

If the United States is the leader in the field of unmanned aerial vehicles, then Russia is the leader in the production of underwater drones

The most vulnerable aspect of modern US military doctrine is coastal defense. Unlike Russia, the United States is very vulnerable precisely from the ocean. The use of underwater makes it possible to create effective means of containing exorbitant ambitions.

The general concept is this. Groups of robotic drones “Surrogat”, “Shilo”, “Harpsichord” and “Juno”, launched both from Navy ships and from merchant ships, tankers, yachts, boats, etc., will blow the minds of NATO members. Such robots can work either autonomously in silent mode or in groups, solving problems in interaction, as a single complex with a centralized system for analyzing and exchanging information. A flock of 5-15 such robots, operating near the naval bases of a potential enemy, is capable of disorienting the defense system, paralyzing coastal defenses and creating conditions for the guaranteed use of products.

We all remember the recent “leak” through a television report on NTV and Channel One of information about the “Ocean multi-purpose system “Status-6”. Filmed by a television camera from the back, a meeting participant in military uniform was holding a document containing drawings of an object that looks like a torpedo or an autonomous uninhabited underwater vehicle.

The text of the document was clearly visible:

“Destruction of important enemy economic facilities in the coastal area and causing guaranteed unacceptable damage to the country’s territory by creating zones of extensive radioactive contamination, unsuitable for carrying out military, economic and other activities in these zones for a long time.”

The question that worries NATO analysts is: “What if the Russians already have an uninhabited robot delivering a nuclear bomb?!”

It should be noted that some operating schemes for underwater robots have long been tested off the coast of Europe. This refers to the developments of three design bureaus - Rubin, Malachite and TsKB-16. It is they who will bear the entire burden of responsibility for the creation of fifth-generation strategic underwater weapons after 2020.

Earlier, Rubin announced plans to create a line of modular underwater vehicles. The designers intend to develop robots for military and civilian purposes of different classes (small, medium and heavy), which will perform tasks under water and on the surface of the sea. These developments are focused both on the needs of the Ministry of Defense and Russian mining companies that are working in the Arctic region.

Underwater nuclear explosion in Chernaya Bay, Novaya Zemlya

The Pentagon has already expressed concern about Russian developments of underwater drones that can carry tens of megatons of warheads.

The general director of the Central Research Institute “Kurs” Lev Klyachko announced the conduct of such research. According to the publication, American experts gave the Russian development the code name “Canyon”.

This project, according to The Washington Free Beacon, is part of the modernization of Russia's strategic nuclear forces. “This underwater drone will have high speed and be able to travel long distances.” “Canyon,” according to the publication, due to its characteristics will be able to attack key bases of American submarines.

Naval analyst Norman Polmar believes the Canyon could be based on the Soviet T-15 nuclear torpedo, about which he previously wrote one of his books. “The Russian Navy and its predecessor, the Soviet Navy, were innovators in the field of underwater systems and weapons,” Polmar noted.

The placement of stationary underwater missile systems at great depths makes aircraft carriers and entire squadrons of ships a convenient, virtually unprotected target.

What requirements do NATO navies have for the construction of new generation boats? This is an increase in stealth, an increase in speed with maximum low noise, an improvement in communications and control, as well as an increase in the depth of immersion. Everything as usual.

The development of the Russian submarine fleet involves abandoning traditional doctrine and equipping the Navy with robots that exclude direct collisions with enemy ships. The statement by the Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy leaves no doubt about this.

“We are clearly aware and understand that increasing the combat capabilities of multi-purpose nuclear and non-nuclear submarines will be achieved through the integration of promising robotic systems into their weapons,” said Admiral Viktor Chirkov.

We are talking about the construction of new generation submarines based on unified modular underwater platforms. The Central Design Bureau of Marine Engineering (TsKB MT) Rubin, which is now headed by Igor Vilnit, is supporting projects 955 Borey (general designer Sergei Sukhanov) and 677 Lada (general designer Yuri Kormilitsin). At the same time, according to UAV designers, the term “submarines” may become a thing of history.

It is envisaged to create multi-purpose combat platforms capable of turning into strategic ones and vice versa, for which it will only be necessary to install the appropriate module (“Status” or “Status-T”, missile systems, quantum technology modules, autonomous reconnaissance complexes, etc.). The task for the near future is to create a line of underwater combat robots based on the designs of the Rubin and Malachite design bureaus and to establish mass production of modules based on the developments of TsKB-16.

2018-03-02T19:29:21+05:00 Alex ZarubinDefense of the Fatherlanddefense, Russia, USA, nuclear weaponsUnderwater combat robots and nuclear weapons delivery vehicles With the advent of unmanned aerial reconnaissance aircraft, unmanned strike systems began to develop. The development of autonomous underwater systems of robots, stations and torpedoes is following the same path. Military expert Dmitry Litovkin said that the Ministry of Defense is actively introducing robotic unmanned control systems and combat systems: “Naval robots are being introduced into the troops along with ground and air ones. Now...Alex Zarubin Alex Zarubin [email protected] Author In the Middle of Russia

S.A. Polovko, P.K. Shubin, V.I. Yudin St. Petersburg, Russia

conceptual issues of robotization of marine equipment

S.A. Polovko, P.K. Shubin, V.I. Yudin

St. Petersburg, Russia

a conceptual issues robotization marine engineering

The scientifically based concepts of the urgent need for robotization of all work related to marine equipment are considered, designed to remove people from the high-risk zone, increase the functionality, efficiency and productivity of marine equipment, as well as resolve the strategic conflict between the complication and intensification of the processes of management and maintenance of equipment and limited capabilities person.

MARINE EQUIPMENT. ROBOTS. ROBOTIC COMPLEXES. ROBOTICS. GOVERNMENT PROGRAM.

The article describes the concept of evidence-based robotics urgent need of all work related to marine technology, designed to bring people from high-risk areas, to improve the functionality, flexibility and performance marine applications and enable strategic conflict between complexity and intensification of management and maintenance of equipment and disabled person.

MARINE ENGINEERING. ROBOT. ROBOT SYSTEMS. ROBOTIZATION. STATE PROGRAM.

As fundamental, conceptual issues of scientifically based robotization of marine equipment (MT), it is advisable to consider, first of all, issues directly arising from the reasons for the need for robotization. That is, the reasons why MT objects become objects of implementation of robots, robotic complexes (RTC) and systems. Hereinafter, the RTK is understood as the totality of the robot and its control panel, and the robotic system is the totality of the RTK and its carrier object.

Robots, as evidenced by the experience of their creation and use, are introduced primarily in places where human work and life activities are difficult, impossible, or pose a threat to life and health. For example, this occurs in areas of radioactive or chemical contamination, in combat conditions, during underwater or space research, work, etc.

In relation to maritime activities, this is primarily:

deep sea exploration;

diving work at great depths; underwater technical work; emergency rescue work; search and rescue operations in adverse hydrometeorological conditions (HMC);

extraction of raw materials and minerals on the shelf.

In relation to the military field: mine and anti-sabotage defense;

reconnaissance, search and tracking; participation in hostilities and their support.

Thus, almost the entire range of objects: from underwater MT (diving equipment, manned underwater vehicles - OPA, submarines - PLPL, equipment for the development of the shelf zone of the world ocean), surface (ships, vessels, boats) to air MT (aircraft - aircraft) are objects of robotization, i.e. they are objects that are subject to the implementation of robots, robotic systems and systems on them.

Moreover, not only work outside

MT facility, overboard, at depth (diving work), but also work directly at the offshore facility. Obviously, the priority of robotization should be directly related to the magnitude of the risk to the lives of personnel (crew members). Quantitatively, the magnitude of the risk can be measured by the statistical or predicted (calculated) probability of a person’s death depending on the type of activity in the year [year-1], as shown in based on statistical data and data from literature sources.

Let us take into account the three levels of risk presented in the figure, depending on the type of activity and the source of risk according to the data. The higher the risk, the closer this type of human activity (and the corresponding type of equipment) is to the beginning of the queue for robotization. This refers to the priority creation of robotic zones both outside and inside MT facilities, robotic operation zones, in order to remove humans from the high-risk zone.

Let p. be the serial number in the queue for robotization of a given (i-th) MT object, and t. - accordingly, the probability of death of crew members of the i-th MT object per year. Then, to estimate the priority of robotization, we can obtain:

n1 =1+|(r); /(1L (1)

where |(t.) is a step function of the risk value:

|(t.) = 0, with g. > GNUR =10-3 year-1;

|(t) = 1 for tNur > g. > GPDU = 10-4 year-1;

|(t) = 2 for tpdu > g, > gppu = 10-6 year-1;

|(T) = 3, Г1< гппу.

When assessing the required degree of robotization of the i-th object MT $1"), it is necessary to focus primarily on the degree of reduction in the number of personnel in the area of ​​activity with an increased risk, which is assumed to be proportional to the degree of excess of t over the gpdl in the following form:

5." = 1 - tPDU t(2)

An assessment of the share of personnel from the total initial number of personnel (F) at the i-th marine equipment facility remaining after the implementation of the RTC will have the following form:

№b = [(1 - poison]. (3)

The degree of robotization, i.e. the degree of implementation of RTK with the aim of replacing the personnel of the /-th MT facility,

can be estimated as a percentage in the following form:

5 . =(F - No.b)F-1- 100%.

From (2) it obviously follows that for t. > rНУр ^ 5т > 90.0%. That is, almost all personnel must be removed from this facility (from this zone) and replaced by RTK.

The principle of replacing human labor with robotic labor in high-risk areas is undoubtedly dominant, which is confirmed by the active introduction of underwater robots - uninhabited underwater vehicles (UUVs). However, it does not exhaust all the needs for the implementation of RTK in maritime affairs.

Next in importance, it is necessary to recognize the principles of expanding the functionality of marine equipment, increasing the efficiency and productivity of work through the introduction of marine robots (MR), RTK and systems. Thus, when replacing heavy diving labor, for example, in the case of inspection, inspection or repair of objects under water (on the ground) with an underwater robot, the functionality expands, the efficiency and productivity of work increases. The use of autonomous uninhabited underwater vehicles (AUVs) as submarine satellites significantly expands the combat capabilities and increases the combat stability of submarines. The active development and use of unmanned boats (UC) and ships (BS), as well as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) abroad, also indicates the promise of robotic transport. Indeed, even all other things being equal, the risk of losing the crew of a MT facility when working in complex GMUs is eliminated. In general, we can talk about the relatively high efficiency (usefulness) of marine robots (UV, BC, BS, UAV) at a relatively low cost.

The next conceptual issue in the problem of scientifically based robotization of marine objects is the classification of marine robotics, which not only records the current state of affairs and experience in the development and use of robots, but also allows us to predict the main trends and promising directions for further development in solving problems of external robotization.

The most reasonable approach to classifying marine underwater robotics

presented in . By marine robotics we mean robots themselves, robotic complexes and systems. The diversity of legal acts created in the world makes their strict classification difficult. Most often, weight, dimensions, autonomy, mode of movement, presence of buoyancy, working depth, deployment pattern, purpose, functional and design features, cost, and some others are used as classification characteristics of marine RTCs (NOV).

Classification according to weight and size characteristics:

microPA (PMA), mass (dry)< 20 кг, дальность плавания менее 1-2 морских миль, оперативная (рабочая) глубина до 150 м;

mini-PA, weight 20-100 kg, cruising range from 0.5 to 4000 nautical miles, operational depth up to 2000 m;

small RV, weight 100-500 kg. Currently, PAs of this class make up 15-20% and are widely used in solving various problems at depths of up to 1500 m;

medium NPA, weight more than 500 kg, but less than 2000 kg;

large RVs, weight > 2000 kg. Classification according to the characteristics of the shape of the supporting structure:

classical shape (cylindrical, conical and spherical);

bionic (floating and crawling types);

Underwater (diving)

work _2 -^ 10

Service on the Navy PLPL -

Shelf development

Motor transport

Fishing

Navy

Natural disasters -

INDIVIDUAL RISK OF DEATH (g per year)

AREA OF UNACCEPTABLE RISK

AREA OF EXCESSIVE RISK

AREA OF ACCEPTABLE RISK

Levels of risk of human death (probability - g per year) depending on the type of activity and source of risk,

as well as the accepted classification of risk levels: PPU - extremely negligible level of risk; MPL - maximum permissible level of risk;

NUR - unacceptable level of risk

glider (airplane) shape;

with a solar panel on the top of the body (flat forms);

crawling UUVs on a tracked base.

Classification of marine RTK (NPA) according to the degree of autonomy. An AUV must meet three main conditions of autonomy: mechanical, energy and information.

Mechanical autonomy presupposes the absence of any mechanical connection in the form of a cable, cable or hose connecting the UAV with the carrier vessel or with the bottom station or shore base.

Energy autonomy presupposes the presence on board of the UAV of a power source in the form of, for example, batteries, fuel cells, a nuclear reactor, an internal combustion engine with a closed operating cycle, etc.

Information autonomy of the UUV presupposes the absence of information exchange between the device and the carrier vessel, or the bottom station or coastal base. In this case, the UUV must also have an autonomous inertial navigation system.

Classification of marine RTK (NLA) according to the information principle for the corresponding generation of NLA.

First-generation marine autonomous RTC VN (AUV) operate according to a predetermined rigid unchangeable program.

First-generation remotely controlled (RC) UUVs are controlled in an open loop. In these simplest devices, control commands are sent directly to the propulsion complex without the use of automatic feedback.

Second-generation AUVs have an extensive sensor system.

The second generation of DUNPA assumes the presence of automatic feedback on the state coordinates of the control object: height above the bottom, diving depth, speed, angular coordinates, etc. These next coordinates are compared in the autopilot with the given ones, determined by the operator.

Third-generation AUVs will have elements of artificial intelligence: the ability to independently make simple decisions within the framework of the overall task assigned to them; elements of artificial vision

with the ability to automatically recognize simple images; the opportunity for basic self-learning with the addition of one’s own knowledge base.

Third generation DUNPAs are controlled by the operator interactively. The supervisory control system already presupposes a certain hierarchy, consisting of an upper level, implemented in the computer of the carrier vessel, and a lower level, implemented on board the underwater module.

Depending on the diving depth, the following are usually considered: shallow-water PTRUs with a working immersion depth of up to 100 m, RPTUs for work on the shelf (300-600 m), devices of medium depths (up to 2000 m) and PTRUs of large and extreme depths (6000 m or more) .

Depending on the type of propulsion system, one can distinguish between UUVs with a traditional rudder group, MRVs with a propulsion system based on bionic principles, and AUV-gliders with a propulsion system using changes in trim and buoyancy.

Modern robotic systems are used in almost all areas of underwater engineering. However, the main area of ​​their application was and remains military. The navies of leading industrial states have already included military UAVs and UAVs, which can become a highly effective and hidden component of the system of means of armed warfare in ocean and sea theaters of military operations. Due to the relatively low cost, the production of NPAs can be large-scale, and their use can be large-scale.

In terms of creating UAVs, UAVs and BS for military purposes, the efforts of the United States are especially indicative. For example, AUVs are attached to each multi-purpose and missile submarine. Each tactical group of surface ships is assigned two such AUVs. The deployment of AUVs with submarines is supposed to be carried out through torpedo tubes, missile launch silos, or from specially equipped places for them outside the submarine’s pressure hull. The use of UAVs and UAVs in the fight against mine danger has proven extremely promising. Their use led to the creation of a new concept of “mine hunting”, including the detection, classification, identification and neutralization (destruction) of mines. Anti-mine

New UUVs, remotely controlled from a ship, make it possible to carry out mine action operations with greater efficiency, as well as increase the depth of mine action areas and reduce the time for identification and destruction. In the Pentagon's plans, the main emphasis in future network-centric wars is on the large-scale use of combat robots, unmanned aerial vehicles and uninhabited underwater vehicles. The Pentagon expects to robotize a third of all combat assets by 2020, creating fully autonomous robotic formations and other formations.

The development of domestic marine robotic systems and special-purpose complexes must be carried out in accordance with the Maritime Doctrine of the Russian Federation for the period until 2020, taking into account the results of the analysis of trends in the development of global robotics, as well as in connection with the transition of the Russian economy to an innovative path of development.

This takes into account the results of the implementation of the federal target program “World Ocean”, ongoing analysis of the state and trends in the development of maritime activities in the Russian Federation and in the world as a whole, as well as systematic research on issues related to ensuring the national security of the Russian Federation in the field of study, development and use of the World Ocean. The effectiveness of implementation of the results obtained in the Federal Targeted Program is determined by the widespread use of dual-use technologies and modular design principles.

The goal of the development of marine robotics is to increase the efficiency of the use of special systems and weapons of the Navy, special systems of departments that exploit marine resources, expand their functionality, ensure the safety of the crews of aircraft, NK, submarines, underwater vehicles and perform special, underwater technical and rescue operations. works

Achieving the goal is ensured by the implementation of the following development principles in terms of the design, creation and application of marine robotics:

unification and modular construction;

miniaturization and intellectualization;

combination of automatic, automated

bathroom and group control;

information support for controlling robotic systems;

hybridization for the integration of heterogeneous mechatronic modules as part of complexes and systems;

distributed support infrastructure in combination with on-board information support systems for maritime operations.

The main directions of development of naval robotics should provide a solution to a number of strategic problems of complication and intensification of military equipment associated with interaction in the “man-machine” system.

Internal direction aimed at ensuring robotization of energy-saturated sealed compartments of the NK, PL and OPA. This includes in-compartment robotic equipment (including mobile small-sized monitoring equipment), complexes and systems for warning about the occurrence of dangerous (emergency) situations and taking measures to eliminate them.

External direction, to ensure robotization of diving and special marine operations, including monitoring the condition of potentially dangerous objects, as well as emergency rescue operations. This includes UAVs, UPS, MRS, AUVs, unmanned underwater vehicles (UAVs), marine robotic complexes and systems.

The main objectives of the development of marine robotics are functional, technological, service and organizational.

Promising functional tasks of marine robotics within the framework of in-ship activities:

monitoring the condition of mechanisms and systems, parameters of the intracompartment environment;

carrying out certain dangerous and especially dangerous work inside and outside compartments and premises;

technological and transport operations; ensuring the performance of crew functions during the unmanned operation of the NK, submarine or aircraft;

warning of emergency situations and taking measures to eliminate them.

Promising functional tasks of marine robotics within the framework of functioning on the surface of an object, above water, under water and on the bottom:

monitoring and maintenance of NK, PL and OPA (including collection and transmission of information on the condition of OPA);

performing technological operations and providing scientific research;

performing reconnaissance, surveillance, and conducting certain combat operations independently;

demining, working with potentially dangerous objects;

work as part of navigation systems and hydrological and environmental monitoring systems.

The main promising technological tasks in the field of creating marine robotics:

creation of hybrid modular autonomous MRS with operational modification of its own structure for various functional purposes;

development of methods for group control of robots and organization of their interaction;

creation of telecontrol systems with volumetric visualization, including in real time;

management of MRS using information and network technologies, including self-diagnosis and self-learning;

integration of MRS into higher-level systems, including means of delivery to the area of ​​their application and comprehensive support for operation;

organization of a human-machine interface that provides automatic, automated, supervisory and group management of the MR.

The main service tasks when operating marine robotics are:

development of ground and on-board infrastructure for testing support and maintenance of small spacecraft;

development of situational simulation complexes and simulators, special equipment and accessories for training, maintenance and support of small-scale systems;

ensuring maintainability and the possibility of recycling equipment structures, devices and systems.

As part of the main organizational tasks and measures for the creation and implementation of marine robotics, it is advisable to provide for:

development of a comprehensive target program (CTP) for the development of marine robotics (MT robotization);

creation of a working body to substantiate and formulate a PCC for robotization of MT, including event planning, formation of a list of competitive tasks, examination, selection of proposed projects and possible solutions;

carrying out measures for organizational, staffing, personnel and material support for testing and operation of marine robotics in the fleet.

As indicators and criteria for the effectiveness of the development and implementation of marine robotics, it is advisable to consider the following main ones:

1) the degree of replacement of facility personnel;

2) military-economic efficiency (efficiency criterion - cost);

3) degree of versatility (possibility of dual use);

4) degree of standardization and unification (design and technological criterion);

5) the degree of compliance with the functional purpose (criterion of technical excellence, the possibility of further modernization, modification, improvement and integration into other systems).

The main condition for the development and implementation of RTK, systems and their elements is the successful solution of economic and organizational problems, primarily the tasks of developing and implementing the robotic control center for mechanical engineering and federal procurement programs of RTK.

One of the most complex and time-consuming processes in the development of a digital design center involves compiling a list of works and technological maps for their implementation (cataloging of works) to solve problems that require the use of robotic tools. Each standard operation carried out by the Navy and other interested departments must be presented in the form of an algorithm or a set of standard actions or scenarios. From the resulting set of scenarios, those where the use of robotic equipment is necessary should be isolated. Selected scenarios (individual operations) must be consolidated into a single updated register of work involving the use of robotic equipment. This list should have a strict hierarchical structure, reflecting

the degree of importance (priority) of these works, information on the frequency or repeatability of their implementation, cost estimates for the development and manufacture of robotic equipment for their implementation. The developed list should become the initial information for subsequent decision-making on the development of the necessary tools within the framework of the PCC.

The well-known thesis has conceptual significance: many important fleet tasks can be successfully solved if we focus on the group use of interacting relatively inexpensive, portable, small-sized robots that do not require developed infrastructure.

structures and highly qualified service personnel, instead of a smaller number of large, expensive, requiring special carriers, and especially manned, underwater, surface and aircraft.

Thus, the robotization of marine equipment is designed to remove humans from the high-risk zone, increase the functionality, efficiency and productivity of marine equipment, as well as resolve the strategic conflict between the complication and intensification of the processes of control and maintenance of equipment, and the limited capabilities of humans.

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9. Maritime doctrine of the Russian Federation for the period until 2020 (approved by the President of the Russian Federation V.V. Putin on July 27, 2001 No. Pr-1387).

10. Lopota, V.A. On ways to solve some strategic problems of military equipment [Text] /

B.A. Lopota, E.I. Yurevich // Issues of defense technology. Ser. 16. Technical means of countering terrorism. -M., 2003. - Issue. 9-10. -WITH. 7-9.

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