What domestic developments are there in the military and civilian spheres of this class of drones? What are the practical benefits and commercial benefits of these devices? Which companies are developing these complexes? You will learn all the information by reading the article from the specialists of the company “ARMAIR DRONE CENTER. ”
What underwater drones are already being produced in the civilian sector of the economy?
All underwater unmanned vehicles can be divided into light, medium and heavy. The light class includes a “Trident” type device. This drone operates at shallow depths, communication with the control panel is via a wire, and can remain underwater for no more than 25 minutes. It has one camera and is capable of moving forward, backward, and in an arc. The middle class of underwater drones includes a device like DEEPFAR, developed by the Chinese company Deepfar Ocean Technology Co., Ltd. The device can dive to a depth of 100 meters and operate autonomously for 2-3 hours. Equipped with a 3D camera, sonar and GPS navigation. Connecting the device to a wired control station. Heavy vehicles for the civilian sphere are still in development, but the military is already mastering this area with might and main.What are the developments of underwater UAVs in the military sphere?
Advanced developments are carried out in the USA, by the DARPA agency, Lockheed Martin Corporation. The following types of underwater autonomous vehicles are being developed:- To hunt enemy ships.
- For detection and neutralization of sea mines.
- For reconnaissance and guidance of missiles and aircraft to underwater and surface targets.
“Simply fantastic,” “there is nothing like it in the world.” This is how Vladimir Putin described it in his annual Address to the Federal Assembly latest developments Russian military-industrial complex. And the head of state called domestic gunsmiths “heroes of our time.”
"Satan's" older brother
To begin with, the president cited some statistics. Thus, the Russian Strategic Missile Forces received 80 new intercontinental ballistic missiles, 102 ICBMs for submarines, and with them 3 strategic submarines of the Borei class. Plus, the number of high-precision cruise missiles has increased more than 30 times, and the number of carriers for these weapons has increased 12 times.
As for the development of new missiles for the domestic “nuclear shield”, the promising Sarmat ICBM is on the way. It is capable of hitting a target anywhere in the world. Moreover, if now Russian ballistic missiles fly only through the Arctic Ocean, then Sarmat can reach the target from an unexpected direction: from South Pole. In addition, the missile is equipped with the most modern missile defense breakthrough system.
They won't be caught up
Sensational statement by the president: the Russian army already has hypersonic weapons in its arsenal. Tests of the promising Kinzhal aviation complex, which flies 10 times faster than sound, have been completed. Since December 1 last year, the missile has been undergoing experimental combat operation in the troops of the Southern Military District.
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"Dagger" is capable of hitting a target at a distance of more than 2 thousand kilometers with a conventional or nuclear warhead. Moreover, air defense and missile defense systems are not scary for him, since their missiles simply cannot keep up with hypersonic weapons.
Moreover, no missile defense system will catch up with a gliding winged warhead. It is twice as fast as the Dagger and reaches speeds of up to Mach 20. In the dense layers of the atmosphere aircraft heats up to 2 thousand degrees Celsius. However, the latest composite materials developed by domestic specialists prevent it from collapsing.
Rocket stayer
Another Russian rocket that Vladimir Putin spoke about cannot boast of fantastic speed. Her specialty is “long-distance running.” More precisely, unlimited, since instead of a traditional chemical engine it is equipped with a nuclear power plant. Successful tests of the stayer rocket took place in 2017.
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The emergence of such technology makes it possible to create completely new strategic weapons. It will be able to stay in the air indefinitely, fly along an unpredictable trajectory to anywhere in the world and strike from the most unexpected direction. If an enemy missile defense system gets in the way of the missile, it will simply fly around it. There's enough fuel.
Intercontinental strategic robots
Faster, deeper, further - these are the main distinguishing features of promising unmanned submarines. The President said that underwater drones are capable of carrying both conventional and nuclear warheads. Therefore, they can be used to destroy any targets: from entire aircraft-carrying strike groups to ports and coastal bases.
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In 2017, tests of a compact nuclear reactor were completed, which will supply energy to promising drones. It turned out to be 100 times smaller than the power plants of conventional submarines, and reaches maximum power 200 times faster.
Death rays
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And finally, a completely expected event - the Russian armed forces are receiving combat lasers, announced Vladimir Putin. Deliveries began in 2017. The head of state did not disclose other details about the ray guns. He only clarified that the appearance of laser weapons in the army will significantly expand Russia’s capabilities in ensuring its own security.
Drones are unmanned devices controlled remotely - it can be a flying, floating or any other robot controlled from a distance. For example, such machines are widely used by civilian and military sappers. Underwater drones are mainly used by scientists and rescuers to study depths of the sea.
An ordinary person can also acquire a similar “toy” - the most common product, abundantly present on the market, can be called various types of multicopters. As a rule, products are equipped with video cameras or other sensors that help monitor the tasks being performed.
Types of drones
Underwater drones are not as common as air or ground ones, however, as of 2015, the technology is actively being developed by private and military companies, since, unlike a weak and living person, the mechanism is capable of carrying heavier loads, and if it breaks down, it will always can be repaired, this industry can be considered very promising. Of course, modern models are far from perfect, and their cost is incredibly high, however, like any new product appearing on the market. However, there are already quite effective products that allow you to perform a number of complex tasks.
All remote controlled underwater models techniques can be divided into 3 broad categories:
- military drones- serve for neutralizing sea mines, patrolling the parking area of warships, for investigative and rescue purposes when ships and other objects of value to the military are sunk
- research— used by scientific expeditions to explore the depths of the sea, caves, and other geological underwater formations, and also used for taking soil samples and observing the underwater biosphere.
- industrial — this type drones are used mainly for servicing underwater elements of structures and communications.
Civilian underwater drone Trident
On this moment, the OpenROV company is actively promoting its version of an underwater drone - it is worth highlighting as the most advanced product available to ordinary people. The device received the proud name “Trident”. The Trident is considered the fastest robot, it develops a speed comparable to the speed of the 8-time Olympic swimming champion, Michael Phelps - yes, these are the characteristics given by the developers of the device themselves.
Another distinctive feature of the model is its high maneuverability, allowing you to stop and turn it around in a matter of seconds. Such qualities can be useful in extreme situations, for example, if you need to quickly locate a drowned person or dodge a collision. David Lang and Eric Stackpole, who invented the subject of discussion, conducted a successful experiment by connecting a controller from the PlayStation 4 game console, displaying streaming video on a monitor and VR glasses from Google.
As for the diving depth, it exceeds the hundred-meter mark acceptable for an ordinary person. The creators have already conducted research in several deep-sea areas, in particular, the project was born as the desire of two friends to check the veracity of an ancient legend, which stated that in 1800, in California, a group of Native Americans hid a certain amount of gold at great depths. This event received resonance in the media and was covered in USA Today.
Today, there are wireless and wired options. One of distinctive features The project is open source. Essentially, any engineer can use the blueprints on the site to build their own Trident, making the development of the technology a difficult process to track as it is unknown how many modifications exist in the world. For everyone else, the product is sold here, priced at $849.
Practical application of underwater drones
The US Army has been using various types of unmanned vehicles for a long time. As a rule, underwater options are designed to conduct terrain reconnaissance, detect enemy submarines, or work with mines. However, in a civilian environment, the devices have much greater potential for use. Robots can greatly facilitate research projects related to the study of hard-to-reach areas of the ocean, small caves that humans simply cannot get into. Dozens of researchers have put the product from OpenROV into practice - the company’s official website even has a section dedicated to the work carried out, with areas marked on the map.
Another promising industry is training. In an interview, David Lang, founder of OpenROV, said he looks forward to the day when every student can look at the contents of the ocean without leaving the classroom. Natural science, biology, history are just a small part of the sciences to which such technologies will contribute.
Repair and maintenance of equipment located under the depths. As a rule, these are cables and transport pipes. Getting to them is quite difficult and expensive. In extreme situations, the use of a controlled robot is an ideal option for identifying problems and damage.
Underwater drones in the military industry
In 2014, the US Navy conducted more than 20 tests of unmanned combat submarines. According to the Department of Defense, almost all tests were failed due to imperfections in products manufactured by Lockheed Martin, one of the largest American contractors. The main task of the drones was to safely detonate mines, however, during the testing process, problems were constantly encountered in the remote control system. At the same time, according to Joe Dougherty, Lockheed's press secretary, at the moment their system can be considered the most advanced in the world, and also noted that when testing drones, representatives of the Navy exceeded the permissible limits for the device.
The US government was going to allocate $864 million for the purchase of underwater unmanned combat vehicles, but a series of failures stretching since 2010 calls into question the further funding of the program and the existence of drones in the form in which they exist now.
Industrial underwater robots
Laying fiber optic networks on the ocean floor, which carries 90% of the world's Internet traffic, is carried out using special mechanisms. Essentially, these are autonomous robots that perform pre-set tasks. In part, they are controlled by operators from ships, however, most of the work is done according to a program embedded in advance. Such devices cannot be called full-fledged drones, since in essence they are just a machine, like those that assemble cars or televisions in factories. Looking at it from a different angle, they can be safely called the fathers of modern underwater drones, sort of the founders of the movement, the inspirers.
Such machines are equipped with 6 degrees of freedom and end with either grippers or an attachment for a specific operation, such as a welding electrode or cutting shears. Perhaps the most famous and successfully used robot is sawfish robot(the fish drank). The robot's task is to cut down trees that were once flooded. He cuts them with a chain saw (its length is 1.5 meters). Before cutting, the robot screws an air cylinder into the tree trunk at a distance of 15 cm from the cut, which brings the tree to the surface. The device is controlled by the operator through a cable from the surface of the reservoir, and through the cable (200 meters long) power is supplied to all systems.
Problems and disadvantages of underwater drones
According to Professor George A. Bekey, who specializes in computer science, electrical engineering and biomedical engineering, unlike ground-based and aerial drones, their underwater counterparts have huge problems with ensuring stable communications. This is due to the presence of water around the device, which greatly distorts the signal. In addition, as of 2012, the US Navy did not have an acceptable power source that could operate effectively over a long period of time. It was in 2012 that the Navy focused on developing equipment capable of performing more than one task at a time, but as already written above, the projects still face the same navigation problems.
conclusions
Looking at modern achievements in robotics, it becomes clear that underwater drones are far from their land-based and airborne counterparts. At the same time, it is safe to say that at the current speed of technology development, humanity is waiting for many achievements in this area. On the path to excellence and efficiency, many difficulties always arise, but looking back at history, it becomes clear that there are no insurmountable barriers, and there are always people who are able to break stereotypes and take the right step towards success.
What will the capabilities of self-driving cars be like in 10 years? Ways to use drones to repair equipment and extract valuable resources are already being actively developed, and although humans cannot yet be used, perhaps our descendants will not have to risk their own lives working in dangerous conditions.
Fishing is reaching a fundamentally new level of development. Recently there was a presentation of a new and in all respects unique drone, which will allow you to fish more efficiently and interestingly than ever.
Fishing was one of the first ways for Homo sapiens to obtain food and one of the most effective. Since ancient times, fishing has come a long way, changing from century to century. And when, it would seem, it would be impossible to come up with something more ingenious than a fishing rod and spinning rod, the engineers still found something to please and surprise. So the craftsmen from PowerVision Robotics Corporation decided to make fishing in the 21st century a little robotic. The result of their work is the latest underwater drone called PowerRay Underwater Robot. The new product was presented at the exhibition consumer electronics CES 2017, which traditionally takes place in Las Vegas.
What is the new product?
New technology, namely PowerRay, was created in order to revolutionize the field of amateur, extreme and professional fishing. It also allows you to significantly improve your fishing efficiency. All this became possible thanks to the fact that the drone combined several useful fishing (and not only) devices and made it possible to use a number of modern technologies when fishing, including for purely entertainment purposes.
So, the underwater drone has sonar, which is used to find the catch. It has a range of 131 feet and a scanning accuracy of 4 inches. The maximum diving depth of the sonar is 98 feet. It is important to note that the sonar itself can be removed from the drone and used separately. The scan results are transmitted to the fisherman in real time.
A logical question would be, what does PowerRay work with? You can synchronize any mobile device with the drone. You can also connect virtual reality glasses to it, as a result of which you can see what exactly is happening under water. This, of course, can be done using a 4K uhd camera with a 100-degree wide-angle lens.
Continuing the topic, if you don’t see them with your own eyes.
Last week, shipbuilder Huntington Ingalls and aerospace giant Boeing announced they were teaming up to create the Echo Voyager underwater drone. The goal is to arrange supplies of submarines as quickly as possible unmanned systems US Navy.
Work on the fifty-ton Echo Voyager has been going on since 2014 in collaboration with DARPA, and recently it became known that Boeing has begun testing this drone no longer in a test pool, but in. Echo Voyager is the largest underwater drone in development so far, which belongs to the XLUUV (extra large unmanned undersea vehicle) class. So far, short-term dives to shallow depths are underway, but at the next stage it is planned to send the drone to greater depth for a long time. According to the creators, it will be able to sail autonomously for months, independently return to base, float to the surface and transmit information. The drone itself consists of modules, which allows you to equip it with a specific filling for different tasks.
Underwater drones are considered one of the priority areas for the development of naval forces. Potential adversaries of the United States, that is, China and Russia, are improving their armed forces and American dominance on the surface of the water is becoming less obvious and guaranteed.
Another problem is the increasingly sophisticated tracking systems of large submarines. The Americans assume that China is building the so-called “great underwater wall” - a system of sensors that track underwater and surface targets in real time.
The third factor is the cost of maintaining large submarines with large crews on board. Autonomous drones, cheap and without humans, look like an attractive replacement in the near future.
Therefore, the Pentagon came up with an idea - to go under water and take advantage of the technological advantage there, creating drones that are small and less noisy than submarines. Ideally, the creation of “mother” underwater drones is being considered, which would carry entire swarms of smaller drones underwater for a variety of purposes.
Last year, Rear Admiral Mathias Winter said: “The Office of Naval Research (ONR), which is developing advanced technologies in the field of unmanned underwater vehicles, plans to deploy an 'Eisenhower backbone' at sea. bottom in all areas of the World Ocean... We want drones to go to sea on a mission once and then operate in the depths of the seas for decades.”
We are talking about creating underwater bases or technical stations where underwater drones could independently charge or undergo maintenance, transmit and store collected information.