• Sakshi Singh

The need for robotic technology transfer from the research labs to civilian applications is now a big problem for the robotic community. In the marine robotics market, it is especially important to equip the robot with a safe and highly reliable Navigation Guidance and Control (NGC) system that allows the Unmanned Surface Vehicle (USV) to navigate safely even in the presence of human activities such as commercial and recreational traffic, swimming, rowers, etc. A crucial factor for successful autonomous navigation is the robot's ability to detect the existence of an unpredictable, potentially moving, obstacle well in advance. This role represents the base brick for developing smart enough collision avoidance systems to reactively detect unexpected obstacles and execute the appropriate avoidance maneuvers to prevent collisions in a safe manner. The present paper describes the design of an innovative sensor for the detection of obstacles, combining both passive and active optical devices and based on a new optronic system concept. It is designed specifically for collision avoidance tasks in marine environments, designed to be easily mounted on small to medium sized USVs. Its innovation lies in the interaction between the various integrated sensors, which are in fact completely decoupled. The paper presents together with the preliminary mechanical design, the functional architecture of the sensor for object detection. In addition, some experimental data collected by the sensor are reported, and some simulations are displayed, highlighting the system's ability to detect and correctly avoid both still obstacles and mobile obstacles passing through.

autonomous underwater vehicle, marine robotics systems, underwater cultural heritage, underwater robotics, design work.

"Marine Autonomous Vehicles", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.5, Issue 11, page no.263-268, November-2018, Available :http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIREY06056.pdf

"Marine Autonomous Vehicles", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org | UGC and issn Approved), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.5, Issue 11, page no. pp263-268, November-2018, Available at : http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIREY06056.pdf