Impact Technologies — Department of Defense SBIR Phase II: U.S. Navy submarines are equipped with an increasing number of actuators, including azimut

Description

U.S. Navy submarines are equipped with an increasing number of actuators, including azimuth thrusters, that can enable an unprecedented level of maneuverability with a properly designed and executed control system. In this Phase II effort, Impact Technologies has teamed with L-3 Communications and Virginia Tech to continue development of an automated submarine propulsion-enhanced control (ASPEC) system to achieve highly-precise control for autonomous execution of course-keeping, mooring/unmooring, mine avoidance, and collision avoidance. The retrofit control system features an energy-shaping control system with Lyapunov stability guarantees, a nonlinear optimal control allocation scheme to ensure fault-tolerant operation, and a safety-preserving guidance system. A detailed design and integration effort will be undertaken in Phase II which will emphasize integration with existing voyage management systems (VMS). Planned simulation studies will extend Phase I results by assessing maneuverability amidst realistic sea disturbances, providing opportunities to demonstrate and quantify vehicle safety in various operating modes (e.g. station-keeping and course-following). The effort will culminate in representative field trials conducted on a mature scaled, autonomous submarine platform developed by Virginia Tech. The muli-phased effort will provide strong opportunities to demonstrate the technology to stakeholders and ensure widespread adoption of the commercialized product on board submarines and similarly-outfitted Navy vessels.