Autonomous Seafloor Mapping System for Unmanned Undersea Vehicles Navy SBIR FY2009.1 Sol No.: Navy SBIR FY2009.1 Topic No.: N091-088 Topic Title: Autonomous Seafloor Mapping System for Unmanned Undersea Vehicles Proposal No.: N091-088-0771 Firm: Barron Associates, Inc. 1410 Sachem Place Suite 202 Charlottesville, Virginia 22901-2496 Contact: Jason Burkholder Phone: (434) 973-1215 Web Site: http://www.barron-associates.com Abstract: Optimal seafloor mapping via an unmanned undersea vehicle (UUV) requires the solution and integration of two underlying problems: (1) autonomous underwater navigation and path planning and (2) accurate seafloor sensing and map construction. Each of these problems has been studied extensively; however, as stated in the solicitation, some major technology development areas requiring innovative solutions persist. Barron Associates, Inc. and its research partners have the expertise, resources, and infrastructure necessary to meet the overall goal of the proposed SBIR effort, which is to develop and demonstrate at-sea, within the time and budget constraints of the first two phases of the program, a complete and practical Autonomous Seafloor Mapping System (ASMS) for UUVs. The ASMS will feature practical enhancements to the current state-of-the-art in each of the problematic areas identified in the solicitation. The proposed ASMS will feature adaptive-autonomous survey schemes enabled by innovative methods to correct navigation errors and co-registered multi-beam side scan and bathymetry data that are precisely synchronized with the navigation system to facilitate simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM). The Phase I effort will focus primarily on implementation and simulation of the adaptive-autonomous path planning component and the navigation error modeling and correction algorithms. Benefits: ASMS technology is widely applicable in both the military and commercial UUV markets. Potential commercial customers include engineering survey companies, geology survey companies, hydrographic survey companies, pipeline companies, oil companies, archaeologists, marine salvors, port authorities, treasure hunters, universities, research institutions, submersible operators, and environmental consultants. As commercial UUVs become more readily available, the ASMS market will continue to grow. Commercial market growth will be driven, perhaps, by the need for a user-friendly commercial ASMS suitable for operators who are not experts in autonomous operations or survey planning. The first and most direct route for fielding military ASMS technology is for U.S. Navy UUV operations. In theory, a military UUV could simply traverse a region to be surveyed according to an a priori survey plan. Or, perhaps a UUV could be preprogrammed to follow a path at a specified height above the seafloor. However, given the wide range of potential applications for military UUVs, navigation inaccuracies and/or errors in the assumptions on which the survey was planned could result in the loss of valuable time and/or information in a critical operational scenario. Such occurrences may not have great repercussions in a scientific or commercial survey setting, but in the context of military operations, such a failing may have dire consequences for the particular mission and for future confidence in UUVs. Return