Hunter, Alan J.

Metcalfe, Benjamin

Thomas, Benjamin

Wilson, Peter

English

OPUS

Rapid prototyping and field deployment of a USV for the Metropolitan Police

        Citation for published version:Metcalfe, B, Thomas, B, Hunter, AJ & Wilson, P 2016, 'Rapid prototyping and field deployment of a USV for theMetropolitan Police', IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation, Stockholm, Sweden, 16/05/16- 21/05/16.Publication date:2016Document VersionOther versionLink to publicationUniversity of BathGeneral rightsCopyright and moral rights for the publications made accessible in the public portal are retained by the authors and/or other copyright ownersand it is a condition of accessing publications that users recognise and abide by the legal requirements associated with these rights.Take down policyIf you believe that this document breaches copyright please contact us providing details, and we will remove access to the work immediatelyand investigate your claim.Download date: 21. Feb. 2020PhotoAuthor 4Rapid-prototyping and field deployment of aUSV for the Metropolitan PoliceBenjamin Metcalfe, Benjamin Thomas, Alan Hunter, Peter WilsonFaculty of Engineering and Design, University of Bath, Claverton Down Road, BA2 7AY, Bath, United KingdomBenjaminMetcalfe,Departmentof Electronicand ElectricalEngineeringBenjaminThomas,Department ofMechanicalEngineeringAlan Hunter,Department ofMechanicalEngineeringPeter Wilson,Department ofElectronic andElectricalEngineeringApplicationThe platform is equipped with various sensors, including:• GPS for localisation and georeferencing• Magnetometer for bearing estimation• Inertial measurement unit, for increased localisation accuracy• Side-scan sonar, a 2D imaging sonar with a large coverage rate• Multi-beam echo sounder, a high resolution 3D imaging sonar• Top-side camera for obstacle avoidance and informing later path planning• Underwater camera for interrogation of shallow targetsInformation provided by these sensors enables autonomous path planning andnavigation. This al lows the system to be used with minimal humanintervention.The Metropolitan Police, the main police force of the Greater London area,have a national ly deployable team of special ised divers capable of carrying outa variety of underwater missions. Researchers at the University of Bath areassisting the Metropolitan Police by developing autonomous robotic systemsto aid and complement the capabil ities of their divers. The aim is to develop anultra-portable and ful ly autonomous robot equipped with sensors that caninspect the underwater environment for objects of interest (e.g. evidence,weapons, and improvised explosive devices) as well as potential hazards tothe divers.Figure 4: Sidescan Sonar map of the floor of the campuslake at Bath University, demonstrating georeferencing ofsonar dataRequirements• Target localisation with an accuracy of less than 1 m• Human-portable system, deployed by up to 2 people• Display data in an intuitive form, suitable for an untrained operator• Relay status updates in real time for remote monitoring• Secure communications to a land-based control station and manual overrideUse case 1 : Deploy the platform in the 90 minute diver preparation window.The body of water is surveyed to aid the divers in planning the mission.Use case 2: Divers are unable to work during the night. This presents anopportunity to extend search operations overnight, surveying large areas.Rapid PrototypingFuture WorkFurther work aims to develop an operational system to be used by the MET inthe field, requiring the fol lowing developments:• Continued development of platform and deployment system• Automated interpretation of sonar data and object recognition• Intel l igent path planning and obstacle avoidance• Effective data visual isation and human interfacingField DeploymentFigure 3 shows the platform incatamaran form, performing a sidescansonar survey. The system uses thenavigation sensors to georeference thedata collected from the environment.This al lows it to be displayed in asimple, human-readable display, asshown in Figure 4.The information gathered is used tointerrogate specific areas of interest ingreater detai l and inform subsequentpath planning.Figure 3: Unmanned vehic incatamaran configuration, performinga sidescan sonar surveyA series of unmanned surface vehicles (USVs) have been created via a “rapidprototyping” approach using a combination of laser-cutting, 3D printing, andoff-the-shelf components. This has led to a highly modular design, whichallows:• Adaptation of the platform to suit a wide range of mission profi les• Operation in shallow or deep water i.e. canals, rivers and lakes• Operation as a catamaran or trimaran, depending on environment• Dynamic reconfiguation of electronic payloadFigure 1 : 3D printing a bow section with polylactic acidSensor PayloadsSide-scanSonarMulti-Beam SonarFigure 2: Render of USV in trimaran configuration

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Rapid prototyping and field deployment of a USV for the Metropolitan Police

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