Vanguard Magazine

P E R S P E C T I V E dreds would provide the level of coverage of Canada's vast northern coastlines need- ed to maintain comprehensive situational awareness at a considerably reduced cost than traditional crewed systems. A fleet can offer flexible observational ca- pabilities to meet evolving mission require- ments. Each system can be configured to address specific monitoring and surveil- lance requests as identified. When the LRAUVs operate in a coor- dinated or swarming configuration, these assets become force multipliers for other surveillance installations. Manufacturing AUVs in the volume re- quired for the envisaged fleet deployments will dramatically reduce the cost per unit and will also improve system availability and reliability. Surveillance, Intelligence, and Data Collection The primary payload is a winch deployed, thin-line towed array for acoustic target detection. Autonomous control systems will be used to reduce ambiguities, either through orthogonal maneuvers or in col- laboration with another fleet LRAUV. Ad- vanced algorithms will be used to classify the target and determine the appropriate action. A payload delivery bay allows for the de- ployment of auxiliary listening stations on the seafloor in targeted locations. Command & Control Due to the inherent challenges with under- 26 OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2023 www.vanguardcanada.com Sponsored Content water communications, LRAUVs should be employed as a semi-independent fleet operating from a centralized Command and Control (C2) center. Depending on the mission and mes- sage urgency, a range of communications methods are available including real time via the thin line array and sound projector for low data rates, but very long range to optical high bandwidth and short range. With LRAUVs co-located in a fleet, mes- sages can be transmitted via multi-hop re- laying transmitting from one AUV to an- other or via deployable seafloor nodes to a C2 gateway (such as a through ice buoy, seafloor cabled sensor or surface ship). However, when near-real time commu- nication to C2 is not available or not de- sirable, autonomy enables the LRAUVs to decide on the appropriate response based on programmed behaviours, rules and pri- orities that can provide effects such as bat- tlespace shaping. Part III: Canada's Development Program Solus-LR In 2017, Cellula successfully responded to a challenge-based call for proposals to develop a long-range, fuel cell-powered AUV, now known as Solus-LR. The chal- lenge was released as part of Canada's All Domain Situational Awareness (ADSA) Science and Technology (S&T) Program, run by DRDC. Solus-LR is designed for 2,000 km sub- merged missions in its current configura- tion and is currently undertaking a range of sea trials. The system has successfully logged over 150 days at sea during the ini- tial development phase. The Solus-LR fuel cell is hydrogen- based: a high-efficiency green fuel. The Hydrogen and Oxygen fuel can be gener- ated as required in the Arctic using a con- tainerized electrolysis system powered by renewable energy. Arctic Pilot The prototype Solus-LR has proven that fuel cell powered AUV's provide a com- pelling long-range capability that can be a core element of Canada's future Arctic surveillance program. The pilot program will build three, sec- ond generation Solus-LR AUVs, building on the current design with incremental improvements on the fuel cell and system reliability. Each Solus-LR will be fitted with a winch deployed thin-line array with the autonomy detection algorithm and be- haviours developed in parallel. Environmental and bathymetric sonars will provide benefit for a whole-of-govern- ment engagement with a local approach to Arctic operations. Over 24 months, this pilot program will not just build and test the AUVs, but will partner with northern communities and companies to establish the logistics, training and operations bases for launch, recovery, and maintenance in the Arctic. The pilot program will also be used to develop standard operating procedures, system management processes and water space management to integrate this new capability into Canada's maritime C2 cen- ters. The subsequent demonstration will cul- minate in a continuous, six month at-sea capability in the Arctic with one AUV on mission, one in transit and one in mainte- nance / training. Following the pilot program, Canada will be able to deploy fleets of LRAUVs at scale by 2026, providing extensive surveil- lance, year-round and under ice through- out the Arctic Archipelago. References 1. Auditor General of Canada Report 6 -Arctic Surveillance, November 2022. Ottawa: Auditor General of Canada Annual Reports 2. DRDC, "Overview of the technical re- sults of the Northern Watch Project," DRDC Scientific Report, June 2016. 2,000-kilometer return trip range from Resolute. Image: Google (2023) Resolute Bay. Available at: https://maps.app.goo.gl/cGu9gWf6CfYNJyy5A (Accessed: May 2023).

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