The overall goal of the R&I component is the joint proof-of-concept and validation of an integrated heterogeneous robotic system, comprising of:

(i)                  A long-endurance autonomous carrier vessel.

(ii)                Multiple small-scale UUVs (micro- UUVs) to be autonomously deployed from the carrier vessel.

(iii)              A remote control and monitoring platform that will enable seamless control, supervision and coordination of the system by the end-user.

The joint design of the long-endurance autonomous carrier vessel will be the primary focus, including:

(i)               The structural design of the vessel.

(ii)             The design and implementation of the micro-UUV launch and recovery system (LARS).

(iii)            The dynamic motion model of the vessel derived through CFD simulations and/or system identification experiments.

(iv)            The fault-tolerant control of the vessel’s propulsion system.

(v)              The COLREGs informed, cyberresilient marine navigation capability of the vessel.