RU2770623C1 - Composite autonomous uninhabited underwater vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

FIELD: vehicles.SUBSTANCE: invention relates to the field of means for development of the global ocean and search for sunken objects. Proposed is a composite autonomous uninhabited underwater vehicle including a streamlined hull, equipped with propellers, accumulator batteries, tools for navigation and searching for sunken objects, wherein secured on lodgements with grips under the hull of the autonomous uninhabited carrier vehicle is a working apparatus, remote-controlled via a fibre-optic cable, equipped with video cameras and working manipulators, wherein a winch with a fibre-optic cable is placed in the lower part of the hull of the carrier vehicle, and secured on top of the hull of the autonomous carrier vehicle is a streamlined antenna module for a radio beacon, wherein a winch with a cable is also installed, and the floating radio beacon with control communication line equipment and a satellite navigation unit is connected to said cable.EFFECT: increase in the efficiency and productivity of search and exploration and underwater technical work in a wide range of depths.1 cl, 2 dwg

Description

The invention relates to the field of means for the development of the oceans and underwater operations, in particular, to the design and architecture of modern uninhabited underwater vehicles.

Currently, several main types of uninhabited underwater vehicles (UUVs) are actively used, including towed, autonomous and cable-controlled vehicles. They are designed to perform their inherent tasks, including the search and survey of sunken objects. So, with the help of towed vehicles, they search for sunken objects over large areas, and autonomous vehicles search in smaller areas. Remote-controlled UUVs carry out additional search and television inspection of objects in limited areas, and in the presence of manipulators, they perform typical underwater work (lifting fragments, sharpening, cleaning from silt, etc.). The composite apparatus proposed in the application is universal and is designed to perform several functions due to the features of its design.

The technical solution of General Dynamics is known, which created and tested autonomous uninhabited underwater vehicles (AUV) Bluefin-21 with two small autonomous vehicles located in the inner compartment of its hull. The information collected by the onboard sensors of the large carrier AUV is stored in the memory of these small SandShark repeater robots. Launched at a given point from the Bluefin-21 hull as torpedoes, they rise to the surface and transmit information from their carrier to surface ships, while simultaneously providing a reverse transmission of commands for further actions to their AUV carrier via a hydroacoustic channel [1].

The disadvantage of such a constructive solution is the limited capabilities of the AUV carrier, which only provides the launch of small repeater devices for transmitting information, the lack of additional equipment or working bodies (manipulators) due to their small dimensions, and the impossibility of returning them to the AUV carrier.

Known for the development of the French anti-mine apparatus "Remora" (based on the body of the serial apparatus "Redermor"), consisting of two autonomous vehicles. A large autonomous module of a torpedo-shaped streamlined shape searches and classifies an object (mines) on the ground with its own technical means. It simultaneously ensures the transportation of a small AUV, which is attached by sleds to the grip on the back of the carrier. After undocking, a small autonomous vehicle examines an object (mine) detected by a large module, identifying it with its sonar, drops a hydroacoustic drive beacon near it and returns to the carrier, or independently floats to the surface if docking is difficult [2].

The specified AUV is the closest in technical essence to the claimed device and adopted as a prototype.

The disadvantages of the prototype are: the lack of working manipulators in the small module, the difficulty of re-docking with the carrier after resetting the beacon's g / a, the probability of an unreliable classification of the object, the possibility of losing a small apparatus in an emergency and the lack of a live broadcast of the video signal to the operator with the image of a sunken object, and, consequently, the impossibility of its identification "online".

The objective of the proposed invention is to create a design for a multifunctional composite AUV for performing underwater work by independently searching for a sunken object with a carrier vehicle, followed by examination of the discovered object and performing work on it by manipulators of a tethered working vehicle mounted on lodgements under the body of the carrier vehicle.

The problem is solved by the fact that the well-known autonomous uninhabited underwater vehicle, including a streamlined hull, which is equipped with propulsion, batteries, means of navigation and search for sunken objects, and a small-sized autonomous vehicle equipped with a sonar and an acoustic marker is fixed on top of the hull, equipped with a sonar and an acoustic marker, characterized in that that under the body of the autonomous uninhabited carrier vehicle, on cradles with grippers, a working remote-controlled apparatus is fixed via a fiber-optic cable, which is equipped with video cameras and working manipulators, while the winch with a fiber-optic cable is located in the lower part of the carrier vehicle body, and on top of the body of the autonomous carrier vehicle, a streamlined antenna module for the beacon is fixed, in which a winch with a cable is also installed, and a pop-up beacon with control line equipment and a satellite navigation unit is connected to the cable harness.

The new distinguishing features of the composite AUV are:

- a transformable structure, including an AUV-carrier with a docked working vehicle and a towed beacon;

- the presence of several (more than two) manipulators on a remote-controlled working apparatus;

- remote control and monitoring of the composite AUV by the operator;

- multifunctionality of the composite AUV (autonomous search for an object, its inspection, the use of manipulators of a tethered UUV, relaying information in real time and operational correction of work);

- the ability to work as part of a group of composite AUVs, searching for a "flock".

These distinguishing features provide sufficient compactness of the design of the composite apparatus with its high multifunctionality and the ability to carry out the current instructions of the operator via a communication channel via a beacon. Including for carrying out the necessary work with manipulators, of which there can be several on the working apparatus (up to 2 on each side), used both to hold the working UUV near the object and to carry out direct work.

The design of a composite autonomous uninhabited underwater vehicle is shown in Fig. one.

To the lower part of the body of the AUV-carrier 1, equipped with propellers 2 and search tools 3, with the help of a small-sized winch with a fiber-optic cable placed in the carrier body, as well as with the help of lodgements with grippers 4, a remote-controlled worker UUV 5 is attached, equipped with a sonar and video cameras 6 for surveying objects and monitoring the operation of manipulators 7 and propulsion complex 8. At the same time, a streamlined antenna module is fixed on top of the AUV-carrier body, in which a winch with a view and a beacon 10 floating to the surface on an antenna cable 9 are located.

Composite autonomous uninhabited underwater vehicle operates as follows.

The purpose of the composite AUV is an independent search in the area with the subsequent performance of the necessary underwater technical work. The composite AUV goes overboard, the communication channel is checked, and the AUV dives into the water. When this antenna buoy is released to the surface (Fig. 2). Using the propellers of the AUV-carrier, the composite vehicle advances to the designated point, arriving at which it checks its position according to GPS / GLONASS data and turns on the onboard search hydroacoustic equipment. The operator constantly monitors the location of the composite AUV and the current situation via the communication line through the antenna buoy, carrying out remote control or tack correction of the carrier vehicle operating under the program, as well as the working vehicle. At the designated point, the carrier apparatus performs a hydroacoustic search for the object, transmitting current information to the operator on the ship in real time. Search lines using hydroacoustic detection means are carried out by the carrier vehicle at a small depth (tens of meters) to exclude the possibility of entanglement when maneuvering the cable line of the released beacon. With the receipt of contacts classified by operators as reliable, they are applied to the map and electronic tablet. Then the examination of the received contacts begins. At the point of contact obtained, the working UUV, which is remotely controlled via a fiber-optic cable, is separated from the grips of the cradles on the body of the AUV-carrier. Using the sonar of the tethered working UUV, the operator brings the device to the object within the range of the video camera and classifies it. After that, using the manipulators (stern for attaching to the object), the necessary work is carried out by two manipulators in the bow of the working apparatus.

The technical and economic advantage of the proposed composite autonomous uninhabited underwater vehicle in comparison with the prototype is that it allows efficient execution of not only search, but also underwater technical work with the selection of object fragments by manipulators of a remote-controlled UUV in a remote area under the direct control of the operator.

Literature.

1. Catalog of underwater military robotic vehicles: M.-URL: http://robotrends.ru/robopedya/podvodnie-voernye-apparaty (accessed 23.09.2020). - Electronic text.

2. Illarionov G.Yu. Underwater robots in the mine war / G.Yu. Illarionov, K.S. Sidenko, V.V. Sidorenkov. - Kaliningrad: - JSC "Yantarny Bereg", 2008.

Claims (1)

Composite autonomous uninhabited underwater vehicle, including a streamlined hull, which is equipped with propulsion devices, batteries, means of navigation and search for sunken objects, characterized in that under the body of the autonomous uninhabited vehicle-carrier, a working remote-controlled apparatus via a fiber-optic cable is fixed on cradles with grippers, which equipped with video cameras and working manipulators, while a winch with a fiber-optic cable is located in the lower part of the carrier vehicle body, and a streamlined antenna module for a radio beacon is fixed on top of the body of an autonomous carrier vehicle, in which a winch with a cable is also installed, and a pop-up radio beacon with control line equipment and satellite navigation unit is connected to this cable.

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