A Beacon Based Solution for Autonomous UUVs GNSS-Denied Stealthy Navigation

TL;DR

This paper proposes a beacon-based navigation system for autonomous underwater vehicles operating in GNSS-denied environments, using acoustic beacons and hierarchical planning for covert, precise fleet navigation.

Contribution

It introduces a novel beacon deployment and hierarchical planning approach for stealthy UUV navigation without GNSS, enhancing covert operation capabilities.

Findings

Effective beacon-based localization for UUVs in GNSS-denied areas

Hierarchical planner adapts routes in real-time for accuracy

System supports covert operations in restricted zones

Abstract

Autonomous Unmanned Underwater Vehicles (UUVs) enable military and civilian covert operations in coastal areas without relying on support vessels or Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS). Such operations are critical when surface access is not possible and stealthy navigation is required in restricted environments such as protected zones or dangerous areas under access ban. GNSS denied navigation is then essential to maintaining concealment as surfacing could expose UUVs to detection. To ensure a precise fleet positioning a constellation of beacons deployed by aerial or surface drones establish a synthetic landmark network that will guide the fleet of UUVs along an optimized path from the continental shelf to the goal on the shore. These beacons either submerged or floating emit acoustic signals for UUV localisation and navigation. A hierarchical planner generates an adaptive route for the drones executing primitive actions while continuously monitoring and replanning as needed to maintain trajectory accuracy.