DARPA UUV undergoes deep sea testing
A new specialised unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) developed under a Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) project has successfully completed deep-water testing by Bluefin Robotics. The system has been designed as part of efforts to develop affordable distributed technology to address Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) surveillance needs over large, operationally relevant areas.
The UUV addresses the requirements of a Phase II subcontract from Applied Physical Sciences (APS) for the Deep Sea Operations (DSOP) programme, which in turn is part of DARPA's Distributed Agile Submarine Hunting (DASH) programme.
The test programme, conducted in February, saw Bluefin Robotics conduct six days of operational testing including two 4,450m dives totalling 11 hours.
In testing the system, the company was provided an opportunity to vet several new vehicle capabilities for their modular UUVs including an extended operational depth rating, an advanced pressure vessel design, a new power system, a newly available high-powered acoustics transducer system, and a transportable docking head launch and recovery system.
David P Kelly, president and CEO of Bluefin Robotics, said: ‘I am proud to have a team, partners, and vendors that step up to solve subsea challenges. We are looking forward to tackling the next set of challenges posed by the DARPA programme and applying our hard-won experiences to others.’
According to Bluefin Robotics, Phase III of the contract was awarded in early March and will fund the full integration of the deep-sea sonar into the vehicle, as well as fund the production of a second system with sonar to support networked operations.
More from Uncrewed Vehicles
-
Reamda upgrades Grasshopper UGV observation mast
Reamda, an Irish engineering company with a focus on UGVs and defence applications, delivered its Riddler platformed to the Irish Defence Forces last year.
-
Roke unveils new CUAS solution
The Roke Agile CUAS has been designed to provide protection for military and civilian situations, as well as to handle swarms of UAS by using a range of sensors.
-
Russia reaches new monthly record for Lancet use in Ukraine
The aggressor’s armed forces have adapted Lancet to Ukrainian conditions via iterative developments accompanied by a significant expansion in production capacity
-
India’s pursuit of UAVs fuels domestic innovation and industrial growth
In response to escalating border tensions and the need for enhanced surveillance capabilities, the Indian Army is ramping up its drone acquisitions, reflecting the growing importance of unmanned systems in modern defence strategies.
-
Australia to adopt new predatory OWL species
The Australian Defence Force will introduce the One-Way Loitering (OWL) platform by Innovaero, the country’s first long-range loitering munition, to enhance strike capabilities and understanding of loitering munitions.
-
Dedrone’s latest uncrewed solutions offers “complete CUAS DTI-M kill chain”
DedroneOnTheMove, which integrates advanced sensor-fusion and mitigation technologies, was showcased at Eurosatory 2024 and has been designed for deployment to enhance airspace security in high-risk environments.