Advanced underwater networks

The outcomes should contribute to:

• Enhanced security for EU Member States and EDF Associated Countries for the areas ASW, SBW, ISR, SF, MCM, MDO, protection of critical infrastructure and situational awareness.
• Use of synergies within European Defence Technological and Industrial Base (EDTIB) to develop common interoperable standards, to avoid duplications or incompatible technology solutions and to reduce development risks/costs.
• Improvement of EU strategical competitiveness and autonomy.

The rapid emergence of unmanned systems in all military operational domains leads to radical changes in the operational strategies of the armed forces. This topic aims to address these changes and in particular EU capabilities to operate and coordinate unmanned systems in the underwater warfare domain (UWW). These systems are limited by the challenging environment (e.g., low communication range/bandwidth, no satellite navigation, poor visibility) and technology gaps (e.g., incompatible technologies, missing common interoperable standards).

Ongoing research on underwater observation, detection, acquisition and communications is expected to make an evaluation of critical technologies for detection of underwater threats for protection of maritime infrastructures and coastal strategic areas and assets and identify novel technologies for improved situational awareness. Several unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs) and stationary systems with different characteristics and capabilities exists in Europe, but currently no manned-unmanned teaming and swarms (UTS) technology is available at a satisfactory maturity level to utilise available synergies and to increase the mission performance of combined tactical units for navies. Furthermore, infrastructure elements such as offshore wind farms and power cables with different sensors are to a large extent unused in this context. Current UUVs have challenges regarding performance, incompatible subsystems and lack of possibilities for retrofit capability extensions.

Specific objective

The aim of this call topic is to develop a new generation of Unmanned Underwater Super Systems (UUSS) and networks, where systems and subsystems would reach a technology maturity level of up to TRL 7, potentially TRL 8 on sub-system-level. The goal is to address specific needs of future UTS missions and to demonstrate these systems in an operational seawater environment. Current state of the art UUVs and fixed infrastructure should natively support UTS by application of a common non-proprietary and interoperable standards without the limitations of retrofit solutions.

Depending on the requirements and the concept of operations (manned-unmanned teaming, swarms, squads, detection and manipulation of objects), the UUSS technical elements can differ significantly in size, range, endurance, payload (e.g., mission equipment, communication bottom node or buoy, towed sonar sensors), onboard systems (e.g., communication, navigation, human machine interface (HMI), sonar sensors, optical sensors), level of autonomy and the collaboration capabilities with unmanned vehicles (UxV) from the same or different domains (i.e., air, ground, sea, subsea).

This development should build on results from prior EU underwater research activities, with the aim to design and develop operationally relevant systems employing the available existing research outcomes.

This call topic contributes to the STEP objectives, as defined in STEP Regulation, in the target investment area of deep and digital technologies.

Requirements and the concept of operations across the EU Member States’ and EDF Associated Countries’ armed forces must be surveyed and analysed to cover a wide range of use cases and to avoid duplications or incompatible technology developments. The outcome should be used as input for conceptional design studies of different UUSS types. This analysis must serve the design. The conceptional design factors should include among others:

• • System performance and technologies:
    • Endurance, range, dive depth and payload requirements.
    • Different energy sources (e.g., batteries, motor fuel, fuel cells).
    • Propulsion types (e.g., electric, diesel, hybrid (diesel–electric)).
    • Concept of operations (manned-unmanned teaming, swarms, squads).
    • Mission profiles (e.g., combination of multiple mission segments such as launch, recovery, fast transit, silent, idle).
    • Capability of being deployed via Air, Land and Sea.
  • Mass, dimensions and shape:
    • Existing systems (e.g., launch and recovery systems (LARS), torpedo tubes).
    • Logistics (e.g., cargo space, 20/40 ft cargo containers).
  • Sustainability and innovation management:
    • Integration of existing or novel subsystems (e.g., definition of assembly space).
    • Definition of a certification plan and data for a future certification.

The requirements on the new generation of UUSS, systems and subsystems are expected to evolve rapidly in the near future due to high pace of technological innovation in the area in particular employment of new UxV. This development risk must be mitigated by innovative, interoperable, and future-oriented designs with a modular structure to maximise the operational lifecycle, sustainability and consequently minimise costs. The feasibility and suitability of the design should be proven by the assembly of early demonstrators or far-developed prototypes and should include features such as:

• • Configurability (e.g., variable mission equipment).
  • Expandability (e.g., exchangeable fuselage section / swap heads).
  • Cross-platform subsystem development (e.g., navigation and communication devices).

Depending on the maturity of the of early demonstrators or the far-developed prototypes, the supersystem (e.g., multiple vehicles and fixed unfractured elements such as bottom nodes and offshore wind farms, power cables), the system (e.g., single vehicle) or subsystem (e.g., vehicle components) may be validated, demonstrated and tested in a relevant or operational seawater environment and may be operated in different concept of operations (e.g., manned-unmanned teaming, swarms, squads). Furthermore, qualification (e.g., non-destructive, destructive) and certification of the UUSS, system and subsystem should be conducted. Possible activities should consist of:

• • Technical aspects
    • Structural (e.g., limit loads, ultimate loads, failure loads, pressure, vibration, shocks).
    • Electrical (e.g., over voltage, over current, overload power, energy storage).
    • Thermal (e.g., temperature, heat transfer, cooling).
    • Radiation (e.g., electromagnetic, acoustic, optical).
    • Manipulation devices (e.g., drilling, handling).
  • Operational aspects
    • Demonstration, testing and validation of mission segments or profiles.
    • Demonstration, testing and validation of collaborative capabilities (e.g., interoperability, shared communication, serial/parallel task execution, initialisation and reconfigurations of formation).
    • Checking of the UU supersystems, systems and subsystems performance against the operational requirements of potential operators.
    • Information Security in military operations.
  • Regulatory aspects
    • Certification by public regulations and standards (e.g., regulatory authorities, industry standards, EU, NATO).

Types of activities

The following types of activities are eligible for this topic:

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

• Integrating Knowledge
  • • Integration of available existing outcomes from research, development and industrial progress, and others.
• Studies
  • • Survey and analysis of requirements and the concept of operations.
    • Execution of conceptional design studies with different UUV types/configurations, concept of operations and mission profiles.
    • Definition of a certification plan and data in view of the future certification of the UUSS, systems and subsystems by the concerned authorities.
    • Authentication for manipulations of objects with the vehicles.
• Design
  • • Design and dimensioning of innovative, interoperable and future-oriented of UUSS, systems and subsystems to fulfil the wide use cases across EU Member States’ and EDF Associated Countries’ armed forces.
• Prototyping
  • • Assembly prototypes of UUSS, systems and subsystems to validate configurability, expandability, and cross-platform subsystem development.

The following tasks should be performed as part of the optional activities:

• Testing
  • • Testing and validation of UUSS, systems and subsystems by executing mission segments or profiles in relevant or operational seawater environment through live demonstrations.
• Qualification
  • • Non-destructive or destructive qualification of UUSS, systems and subsystems (e.g., structural, electrical, thermal, radiation), checking that the UU supersystems, systems and subsystems meet its operational requirements to effectively accomplish its mission and user needs.
• Certification
  • • Certification of UUSS, systems and subsystems by public regulations and standards (e.g., regulatory authorities, industry standards, EU, NATO, etc.)

The proposals should substantiate synergies and complementarities with foreseen, ongoing or completed activities in the field of underwater warfare, notably those described in the call topic EDF-2022-RA-UWW-UTS related to Underwater manned-unmanned teaming and swarms and others regarding a common non-proprietary and interoperable standard for UTS operations. Other European or NATO standards must be integrated into the new generation of UUSS, systems and subsystems.

Functional requirements

The solution should comply with the following functional requirements:

• The system architecture should be open, non-proprietary, modular, adaptable and agile.
• The next generation of UU supersystems, systems and subsystems should be innovative, interoperable and future-oriented.
• The system should incorporate solutions adopting artificial intellect (AI) and machine learning (ML) for data analysis, information handling, system monitoring, and decision aid.
• Fill capability gaps of EU Member States’ and EDF Associated Countries’ armed forces concerning UTS as expressed in supporting their capability requirements.
• Enable enduring operations in several EU maritime environments.

The solution should be supported by a concept of operations. The concept of operations should cover the areas Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW), Seabed Warfare (SBW), Mine Countermeasures (MCM), Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR), Special Forces (SF) Support, Multi-Domain Operations (MDO), protection of critical infrastructure as well as situational awareness, and may include others.

The UUSS should support different ranging, navigation, and communication topologies (e.g., single-link, star, multihop) and a combination of stationary deployed nodes, buoys, surface ships and underwater vehicles of different sizes:

• Small and Medium UUVs:
  • Formation of large groups of rather homogenous UUVs (swarms) to benefit from overloading and scaling effects.
  • Formation of small groups of rather heterogeneous UUVs (squads) to benefit from shared individual vehicle capabilities and serial/parallel task execution.
• Large and Extra-Large UUVs.
• Sensors and actors, like different manipulation devices to cut cables, nets, etc.
• Assistance of human divers from SF during ISR missions at the enemy coastline by for instance, transporting heavy equipment to support the mission or even the diver itself.
• Long range and endurance capabilities for the surveillance of critical infrastructures (e.g., pipelines, communication, and power cables).
• Mothership / carrier concepts to launch and recover multiple small UxVs from different domains (air, ground, sea, subsea) for high-risk missions.