SYLLABUS
GS-3: Achievements of Indians in science & technology; indigenization of technology and developing new technology
Context: A new generation of Man-portable Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (MP-AUVs) has been developed by DRDO’s Naval Science & Technological Laboratory (NSTL), Visakhapatnam, for advanced mine-countermeasure operations.
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- The recently concluded field trials at NSTL/Harbour have successfully validated the system’s salient parameters and critical mission objectives.
- Multiple industry partners are involved in system realisation, and the system will be ready for production in the next couple of months.
Key Features of the MP-AUVs
- Portable and Lightweight: The MP-AUV system is portable and lightweight, making it man-portable and deployable by personnel.
- Multiple AUV units: The system comprises multiple autonomous underwater vehicles working collaboratively.
- Real-time detection: The AUVs are equipped with Side Scan Sonar and underwater cameras for high-resolution seabed imaging and real-time visual confirmation.
- Autonomous classification: The onboard deep learning based target recognition algorithms enable autonomous classification.
- Communication Network: A robust underwater acoustic communication has been integrated to facilitate inter-AUV data exchange during operations ensuring enhanced situational awareness.
Strategic Significance of the MP-AUVs
- Rapid Response Capability: The system delivers quick operational response with reduced operational risk and logistic footprint for naval mine warfare applications.
- Lower Logistic Requirements: MP-AUVs maintain a significantly smaller logistic footprint than traditional systems.
- Advanced Underwater Capability: The vehicles represent a major milestone in developing a deployable, intelligent, and networked mine-countermeasure solution.
- Support for Aatmanirbhar Bharat: The project promotes indigenous defence technology and strengthens maritime self-reliance.
- Enhanced Naval Mine Warfare: MP-AUVs complement upcoming mine countermeasure vessels to reinforce India’s naval mine-warfare capabilities.
- Operator Efficiency: The autonomy and smart recognition feature significantly reduce operator workload and overall mission duration.