SBIR Phase I: Field Demonstration of Ship Hull Inspection with a Fleet of Unmanned Underwater Vehicles

小企业创新研究（SBIR）第一阶段项目的更广泛影响是保护海洋生态系统免受入侵物种的侵害，并帮助航运业减少温室气体（GHG）排放。海洋入侵物种被认为是全球海洋和沿海生物多样性的最大威胁之一，仅次于栖息地丧失。保持海洋健康对于维护海洋经济的就业、发展和增长至关重要。这在美国尤其重要，海洋经济为美国国内生产总值贡献了近4000亿美元，其中40%的人口居住在沿海县。海洋入侵物种转移的主要媒介之一是船体上的生物污垢，即微生物、植物、藻类和动物在水下船体上的不良积累。生物结垢的第二个影响是增加船体上的阻力，导致船舶燃料消耗和大气中GHG排放的增加。该项目提出了一种利用无人水下航行器（UUV）对船体进行水中检查的系统。自动水下检查系统将为海事利益攸关方提供生物污损数据，以优化船体清洁计划，验证遵守法规的情况，从而改善船舶性能和生态系统健康。该项目开发了一个利用UUV舰队的系统，该UUV舰队形成了一个拱形，该拱形由位于拱形末端之一的船只（例如动力船，船员船）操作。它可以在船舶进入或离开港口时检查船体，而不必固定不动。UUV相互之间以及与表面之间无线交换数据，从而实现在没有系绳但在人类监督下的自主协调检查。将实施先进的定位系统和控制方案，实现在没有GPS的情况下精确定位，并在船体附近精确作业。本项目将进行水中实验，以验证定位系统和控制方案的性能。该项目的结果将是概念验证，其中由两艘UUV组成的船队检查船舶的船体，证明该检查系统快速、实用且可重复。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project is to protect marine ecosystems against invasive species and to help the shipping industry reduce its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Marine invasive species are considered to be one of the greatest threats to marine and coastal biodiversity worldwide, second only to habitat loss. Keeping the oceans healthy is essential to preserve the employment, development and growth of the ocean economy. This is particularly relevant in the United States, where the marine economy contributes nearly $400 billion to the nation's gross domestic product with 40 percent of the population living in coastal counties. One of the main vectors for the transfer of marine invasive species is the biofouling on ship hulls, described as the undesirable accumulation of microorganisms, plants, algae and animals on the submerged hull. A second impact of biofouling is to increase the drag forces on the hull, resulting in an increase of the ship's fuel consumption and GHG emissions in the atmosphere. This project advances a system for in-water inspection of ship hulls with a fleet of Unmanned Underwater Vehicles (UUVs). The automated underwater inspection system will provide maritime stakeholders with biofouling data to optimize hull cleaning schedules, validate compliance with regulations, thereby improving ship performance and ecosystem health. This project develops a system leveraging a UUV fleet that forms an arch operated from a vessel (e.g. power boat, crew vessel) located at one of the arch's extremities. It can inspect hulls as ships enter or leave ports without having to be immobilized. The UUVs exchange data wirelessly between each other and with the surface, enabling autonomous coordinate inspections without tethers but under human supervision. An advanced positioning system and control scheme will be implemented to enable accurate localization without GPS and precise operation in the vicinity of the hull. This project will conduct in-water experiments to validate the performance of the positioning system and control scheme. The outcome of the project will be a proof-of-concept where a fleet of two UUVs inspect the hull of a vessel, demonstrating that the inspection system is fast, practical and repeatable.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.