Autonomous Coordination and Networking between Multi-Environment Marine Robots at Extended Ranges

This work proposes to develop a framework that allows robot teams to perform underwater survey missions (e.g. searches for downed aircraft, mines, or hydrothermal vents) that adapt to the environment and then to send the survey results above-water over extended ranges. The underwater robots use surface robots as relays to get the results of the surveys above-water. Then, the results are further relayed over extended ranges to ships (or alternatively, jetties and shore-based stations) through aerial drones. These drones are periodically deployed from ships or jetties at extended ranges so human operators can monitor, assist, interpret or use the information. This means it is possible for one ship to monitor several robot teams at extended ranges and*make good use of the costly deployed ship. The aerial drone challenges are to develop search algorithms to explore an area for a robot team based on a last known location. The drone is responding to a water surface robot that is performing an adaptive, not scripted, mission. As per the examples listed above, applications are in oceanographic environments for defence, scientific, or commercial missions.*