Navigation Systems for UUVs: Overcoming Challenges in GPS-Denied Environments

Nico Prajogo

Abstract


The operation of Unmanned Underwater Vehicles (UUVs) in environments where Global Positioning System (GPS) signals are unavailable presents significant navigational challenges. This paper investigates advanced navigation systems designed to ensure reliable UUV operations in GPS-denied settings, such as deep oceans, underwater caves, and densely structured environments. We discuss various techniques, including inertial navigation systems (INS), acoustic positioning, and sensor fusion methods that combine data from multiple sources such as Doppler velocity logs (DVL), altimeters, and environmental sensors. The effectiveness of these systems is evaluated through experimental trials and simulations in different underwater conditions. The findings demonstrate that integrating various navigation techniques can significantly improve positional accuracy and overall mission success. This research highlights the importance of developing robust navigation strategies for UUVs, paving the way for enhanced autonomy and operational capabilities in challenging underwater environments.

Keywords


UUV, navigation systems, GPS-denied environments, sensor fusion

References


Barbour, N. M. (2010). Inertial navigation sensors. NATO RTO Lecture Series, RTO-EN-SET-116, Low-Cost Navigation Sensors and Integration Technology.

Barbour, N. M., Gustafson, D. E., & Hopkins III, R. E. Small Inertial Navigation Sensors for GPS-Unavailable Environments.

Hong, S., Kim, J., Pyo, J., & Yu, S. C. (2016). A robust loop-closure method for visual SLAM in unstructured seafloor environments. Autonomous Robots, 40, 1095-1109.

Joordens, M., & Champion, B. (2016). Underwater swarm robotics: Challenges and opportunities. Handbook of Research on Design, Control, and Modeling of Swarm Robotics, 718-740.

National Research Council, Division on Engineering, Physical Sciences, Naval Studies Board, & Committee on Autonomous Vehicles in Support of Naval Operations. (2005). Autonomous vehicles in support of naval operations. National Academies Press.

Patrón, P., & Petillot, Y. (2008). The underwater environment: A challenge for planning. UK PlanSIG Edinburgh, 2008.

Pereira, E., Bencatel, R., Correia, J., Félix, L., Gonçalves, G., Morgado, J., & Sousa, J. (2009). Unmanned air vehicles for coastal and environmental research. Journal of Coastal Research, 1557-1561.

Vögele, T., Wehbe, B., Nascimento, S., Kirchner, F., Ferreira, F., Ferri, G., ... & Alvarez, M. D. L. (2016, April). ROBOCADEMY—A European Initial Training Network for underwater robotics. In Oceans 2016-shanghai (pp. 1-5). IEEE.


Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.


Bookmark and Share


Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.