Future maritime mine countermeasures capability

The outcome should contribute to:

• a stronger, more competitive and technologically independent European Defence Technological and Industrial Base (EDTIB) when it comes to solutions for next generation MCM capabilities;
• enhanced security for EU Member states and EDF associated countries (Norway) and more capable and interoperable forces performing MCM operations;
• a new European interoperable concept of operations for MCM;
• future extended sea-bed warfare capabilities.

The maritime mine warfare domain is currently facing two critical challenges. On the one hand, uncertain geopolitical context makes it crucial for European navies to retain the necessary capabilities to keep European waters, critical infrastructure at sea, and sea lines of communications clear from an ever-evolving mine threat (such as buried mines, drifting mines, intelligent mines). To secure a sustainable European sovereignty in conventional military capabilities, the European defence stakeholders must understand the threat and develop appropriate interoperable and interchangeable solutions to mitigate the risk due to naval mines and underwater explosive devices and establish local maritime superiority in areas prone to mine warfare.

On the other hand, new technologies, especially the miniaturisation of the sensors and the level of autonomy on-board naval unmanned platforms, are enabling new operational concepts, such as so-called “stand-off” or semi-autonomous concept – that limit human exposure to danger. European navies have already started to embraced this challenge to maximise future interoperability and share the costs of these developments. Many current European mine countermeasures (MCM) systems are facing obsolescence of systems, and rapid evolving technologies in the underwater domain offer new solutions for Maritime MCM. These solutions enable also new operational concepts to be established.

Specific objective

The specific objective of this topic is to enable solutions that are easily deployable both on current (by retrofit) and future naval assets. The focus is on interoperability and interchangeability as from the design phase of the systems, including data-sharing. The aim is to provide capable and cost-effective technologies for MCM operations. These include enabling systems for mine warfare platforms (such as launch and recovery (LARS) and command and control (C2) systems), development of unmanned platforms, decision support, planning, and evaluation tools.

The focus is on improving effectiveness in difficult seabed conditions (such as cluttered seabed and deep waters) and against difficult naval mines (such as intelligent mines, stealth mines, buried and conceiled mines, drifting mines, and rising or mobile mines), and on reducing time (increase efficiency) of the overall MCM operation. Development of unmanned systems and autonomous features are seen as enablers in this regard. Improvements may also be related to automated collaborative behaviour of UxV-based system of systems to benefit both operational quality and efficiency.

The outcome should benefit a European interoperable and interchangeable MCM future system designed with incremental capabilities to build successive systems to counter current and new mine threats consisting of a system of systems (SoS) with evolving and scalable toolboxes, and enhanced intelligent platforms. The aim is to reach a maturity level equivalent to at least technology readiness level 6 (TRL 6) on at least sub-system level.

The proposals must address design to qualification activities of next-generation MCM solutions which improve the quality and speed of MCM processes. The proposals must cover operations in demanding conditions. The proposals should consider and contribute to unmanned solutions and concepts.

The areas concerned for development and improvement, and that must be addressed are the following:

• performance of the MCM process in terms of quality and time using decision support capabilities;
• operational effectiveness and efficiency through extended autonomous behaviour and improved endurance of unmanned systems (UxV) both individually and as collaborative system of systems;
• detection and neutralisation of difficult naval mines (drifting mines, buried mines, stealthy mines) through improved sensors and/or vectors;
• extending operational MCM capability in battlespace and time, covering environment and factors such as difficult seabed terrain, high sea state, iced waters, non-permissive electromagnetic environment, in the water column from surface to maximum 1000m;
• improving reliability and robustness.

Proposed solutions that address these areas should consider some or all of the following features:

• decision support using sensor data fusion, big data analysis, data exploitation, and improvement of decision-making algorithms and tactical procedures;
• sensor and effector development utilising forms of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and swarm techniques;
• UxVs (UAVs, USVs, UUVs, and other stationary and mobile drones) complementary or embedded to the MCM organic system and interoperable with other naval force elements;
• UxV deployment, launch and recovery functions implemented for designed or designated vessels, craft of opportunity and shore infrastructure;
• joint multi-level (platform-unit-fleet) MCM mission management tools utilising for example AI and Big Data solutions to manage operations using multiple resources (manned and unmanned);
• communication systems to operate unmanned systems with manned systems, including interworking and interoperability of applications and data;
• digital infrastructure and cyber security by design.

Types of activities

The following table lists the types of activities which are eligible for this topic, and whether they are mandatory or optional (see Article 10(3) EDF Regulation):

The proposals must cover at least the following tasks as part of the mandatory activities:

• Design:
  • the proposed solutions must be interoperable at various levels addressing and using existing or foreseen (known to be under negotiation) European and NATO standards;
  • the proposals must adhere to a technical design review milestone approach:
    • SRR (System Requirements Review) SWSR (Software Specifications Review);
    • SFR (System Functional Review)/SDR (System Design Review) PDR (Preliminary Design Review);
    • CDR (Critical Design Review) TRR (Test Readiness Review);
• System prototyping:
  • the proposed solutions must be demonstrated at sea under realistic environmental conditions with relevant mine targets and in an operational environment.

In addition, the proposals should cover the following tasks:

• Design:
  • the proposed solution should form a comprehensive next generation MCM concept supported by relevant European interoperable standards and architecture.
• System prototyping:
  • the proposed solutions should be demonstrated at sea under realistic environmental conditions with relevant mine targets and in various operational environments.
• Testing and qualification:
  • the proposed solutions should be tested in a simulated or controlled environment representing various use cases;
  • the proposed solutions must at least partially be tested and qualified in an operational environment.

The proposals must substantiate absence of duplication of activities and tasks described in the topic Solutions to detect, identify, counter and protect against mine threats (including those operating at very high depths) of the call Underwater Control contributing to resilience at sea under the European Defence Industrial Development Programme (EDIDP-UCCRS-MCM-2020). The proposals must also give due consideration to sufficient human oversight of autonomous features in the solutions, as addressed e.g. in the United Nations Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons Group of Governmental Experts Lethal Autonomous Weapon Systems (CCW GGE LAWS) 11 guiding principles.

Moreover:

• projects addressing activities referred to in point (d) above must be based on harmonised defence capability requirements jointly agreed by at least two Member States or EDF associated countries (or, if studies within the meaning of point (c) are still needed to define the requirements, at least on the joint intent to agree on them)
• projects addressing activities referred to in points (e) to (h) above, must be:
  • supported by at least two Member States or EDF associated countries that intend to procure the final product or use the technology in a coordinated manner, including through joint procurement

and

• • based on common technical specifications jointly agreed by the Member States or EDF associated countries that are to co-finance the action or that intend to jointly procure the final product or to jointly use the technology (or, if design within the meaning of point (d) is still needed to define the specifications, at least on the joint intent to agree on them).

Functional requirements

The proposals must be supported by a set of capability requirements as agreed by a group of supporting Member States or EDF associated countries (Norway). The proposals must give evidence of coherence between the proposed activities and the requirements by the supporting Member States and EDF associated countries (Norway). Development of capability requirements by supporting Member States and EDF associated countries (Norway) may take into account relevant work done in groups like the PESCO MAS MCM that try to forge a long term vision on the development of an interoperable European MCM Toolbox.

The proposals should develop a capability aiming to:

• provide enhanced MCM processes in challenging environments;
• enable an open, modular, and adaptable MCM system-of-systems suite;
• be able to operate 24/7/365 in the European maritime waters.