What's next for the Pentagon after the Replicator programme?
Although the Replicator initiative has made several accomplishments, there are still multiple gaps to plug across the US Department of Defense (DoD) and its services.
Kongsberg control system for SEA-KIT USV
Kongsberg's K-MATE control system will be integrated with the SEA-KIT USV as part of a project being run by Hushcraft, the company announced on 21 August.
The new SEA-KIT USV is being built by Hushcraft in the UK, and will be operated by SEA-KIT International. The USV, which is being designed to operate at sea without assistance for months at a time, can carry a deployable and retrievable payload of up to 2.5 tons. The system is being developed with a long-range, long-endurance ocean capability for independent seafloor mapping and similar ocean exploration applications.
The K-MATE control system can be integrated with any vessel through an electrical interface. The system provides adaptive waypoint following for survey and AUV operations while accepting sensor data for scene analysis and collision avoidance. It is designed to follow mission plans to supervise operations or direct operator control for complex tasks.
SEA-KIT will also be equipped with Kongsberg's Maritime Broadband Radio for high bandwidth direct communication to shore, SeaPath 135 with an MRU5+ for heading, attitude and positioning and the AIS300 automatic positioning system. Kongsberg’s HiPAP acoustic positioning and control system will be used to supervise AUV operations.
SEA-KIT's configuration will allow the vessel to carry a Hugin AUV. The USV’s hull is designed to carry different payloads including multibeam echo sounders such as the EM302. The USV will also have extended endurance options, making it suitable for trans-ocean survey operations.
SEA-KIT is due to be launched in September 2017.
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