UNMANNED VEHICLE ASSISTANCE FOR SUBMERGED HOST VEHICLES

Organization Name

Inventor(s)

Michelle V. De Jong of Long Beach CA (US)

UNMANNED VEHICLE ASSISTANCE FOR SUBMERGED HOST VEHICLES - A simplified explanation of the abstract

This abstract first appeared for US patent application 18182065 titled 'UNMANNED VEHICLE ASSISTANCE FOR SUBMERGED HOST VEHICLES

The patent application describes methods, apparatus, systems, and articles of manufacture for unmanned vehicle assistance for submerged host vehicles.

The apparatus includes memory, machine-readable instructions, and processor circuitry to determine a reduced operational capability of a submerged vehicle, deploy an unmanned vehicle in response to this occurrence, and determine positional information of the unmanned vehicle based on its interaction with the water surface.

This innovation aims to provide assistance to submerged vehicles by deploying unmanned vehicles to take over tasks when the host vehicle experiences operational issues.

The technology can be used in various industries such as marine exploration, underwater maintenance, and search and rescue operations.

It addresses the problem of maintaining operational capabilities of submerged vehicles by utilizing unmanned vehicles as a backup system.

The benefits include increased efficiency, reduced risk to human operators, and improved response time in emergency situations.

Commercial applications could include underwater research, offshore oil and gas operations, and underwater infrastructure inspections.

For prior art related to this technology, researchers could explore patents in the fields of autonomous vehicles, underwater robotics, and marine engineering.

Questions about this technology:

  1. How does this innovation improve the safety of underwater operations?
  2. What are the potential cost savings associated with using unmanned vehicles for underwater assistance?

Original Abstract Submitted

Methods, apparatus, systems, and articles of manufacture for unmanned vehicle assistance for submerged host vehicles are disclosed. An example apparatus includes at least one memory, machine readable instructions, and processor circuitry to at least one of instantiate or execute the machine readable instructions to determine an occurrence of a reduced operational capability of a vehicle, the vehicle at least partially submerged in a body of water, cause an unmanned vehicle (UV) to separate from the vehicle in response to the occurrence of the reduced operational capability, and determine positional information corresponding to the UV based on the UV reaching or departing a surface of the body of the water.