Time-constrained optimization of multi-AUV cooperative mine detection

An increasingly important tool of mine counter-measures (MCM) is a team of autonomous unmanned vehicles (AUV) working in cooperation to provide effective mine detection. This approach reduces the total time required to create a map of mines in an underwater field while minimizing physical risk to humans. The challenge for the designers is to most effectively use the resources of the AUV team to obtain the most accurate possible map of the mines in the shortest possible time period. This paper presents several contributions toward solving this problem. First, a background demonstrates the relevant considerations of the cooperative AUV mission along with the shortcomings of previous research. A strategy is then presented that seeks to optimize the accuracy of a map of mines in an underwater field provided by the AUV team under an unknown time constraint. The strategy is encapsulated into an algorithm that optimizes the total assignments of search targets to all individual AUVs. Finally, results are shown from a simulation implementing the algorithm.