Unmanned Surface Vehicles (USV)
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The DARPA No Manning Required Ship (NOMARS) program has successfully trialled automated at-sea refueling for the Defiant unmanned surface vessel (USV).
The USV Defiant is intended to operate autonomously for long durations at sea and is designed from the ground up with no provision, allowance, or expectation for humans on board.
US Navy PMS-406 (the Unmanned Maritime Systems Program Office) and USV Squadron 1 (USVRON-1) conducted the test in partnership, using two of the PMS-406 experimental USVs: Ranger and Mariner.
NOMARS FAS Approach: Fueling-At-Sea for USVs
Fueling-at-sea (FAS) for USVs presents a problem, as current FAS solutions typically use personnel to handle lines and hoses on the platform being refueled.
Requiring personnel on the USV for the operation reportedly adds significant constraints on USV design and operations, as the vessel must then be designed with considerations for safety of the humans on board, even if for a short period of time. It can also be risky and sometimes dangerous to transport personnel to a USV in rough seas or high winds.
The NOMARS FAS approach is designed for operation without any human on the USV – but does require humans on the refueling vessel. The FAS approach mirrors a standard refueling concept of operations (CONOPs) as closely as possible to be familiar to Military Sealift Command (MSC) oiler crew and reduce their learning curve.
DARPA has worked closely with MSC’s Taluga Group throughout the NOMARS program to advise on development of the FAS system and CONOPs.
Testing Procedure
For the recent test, USV Ranger carried a receiving station representative of the system that will be on the NOMARS USV Defiant, and USV Mariner carried a refueling “mini-station,” custom-designed by NOMARS prime contractor Serco Inc. While there were personnel aboard both vessels during the event, no people were involved with operations on the receiving side.
The team demonstrated all parts of the system CONOPs while underway, including passing the lead-line to the refueling side, passing and connecting the refueling probe to the USV side and pumping water.
This was the first on-water test of the system, and all parts of the operation were successfully demonstrated. DARPA assert that the support and partnership of Navy PMS-406 and USVRON-1 proved instrumental in the testing, both of whom contributed personnel and resources.
The next FAS test is set to take place with NOMARS USV Defiant during her sea trials period. Defiant is a 180’, 240-metric-ton lightship currently nearing completion of construction and is scheduled to depart for her multi-month at sea demonstration in spring 2025.
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