Anti-submarine warfare unmanned vessel under construction

An autonomous unmanned vessel designed to track quiet diesel-electric submarines spanning miles of ocean depths for months at a time with minimal human input is now under construction and is expected to set sail for testing in 2015.

Leidos, a national security solutions company, has begun construction on the Autonomous Continuous Trail Unmanned Vessel (ACTUV) under a Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) program for the design, development and construction of a vessel originally conceived for an anti-submarine warfare mission.

“ACTUV’s advanced sensor technology should allow for continuous surveillance which, combined with the vessel architecture and design, is expected to provide autonomous safe navigation supporting Navy missions around the world,” said Leidos Group President John Fratamico.

ACTUV carries other sensors and mission packages designed to allow it to conduct a variety of Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance and other alternate missions. With situational sensors that can ensure safe navigation, the ACTUV trimaran has electro optics, long range and short range radar.

“A cross-disciplinary Leidos team leveraged insights and innovation from across the organization to develop the concept of the autonomous unmanned vessel. It would help keep our troops out of harm’s way and provide capability in more harsh environmental conditions for a longer period of time,” said Fratamico.

Maritime and hydrodynamic engineers designed the platform, and scientists and experts designed autonomy for safe navigation, status and health reporting, and sensor control and processing. Analytics experts programmed the logic for identifying other vessels and predicting their behavior.

Leidos received direction to start construction of the ACTUV from DARPA Program Manager Scott Littlefield at the conclusion of a Production Readiness Review held in February. Christensen Shipyard, Ltd. (CSL) is constructing ACTUV in Vancouver, WA, using non-traditional composite structures and modular construction techniques under supervision of Leidos and Oregon Iron Works (Clackamas, OR.) CSL employs a lean manufacturing process with parallel work flow to complete ACTUV construction in approximately 15 months. ACTUV is scheduled to be launched on the Columbia River in 2015.