Introduction 1.4 Applications 5
Introduction
level of autonomy as well as in the diversity of applications in commercial activities in the maritime
domain. The applications range from automated port
container terminals with automated guided vehicles
(AGVs), stacking cranes, gantry systems, and other automated systems that are significantly revolutionizing
port and container shipment operations, to autonomous
underwater and surface vehicles (AUVs and USVs)
for commercial and military applications, including for
hydrographic surveys, underwater pipeline inspections,
surveillance, asset protection, and mine-counter measures. Typically several subsystems integrated together
make up an unmanned automated system. Design and
development of such systems utilize many of the basic elements of ocean engineering. In the case of an
AUV, while the size of the vehicle may be determined by the payload requirements, the shape of its
hull and the designs of its propulsion and control
surfaces, for stable and efficient motion and maneuverability, are determined through application of the
principles of hydromechanics. Selection of materials
and structures for operations at given water depths
and for durability and reduced maintenance is based
on principles of materials engineering and on corrosion science, as well as on expected hydrodynamic
loads on the structures. Batteries and powering systems are selected for long endurance and together
with other electronic elements require appropriately
designed cooling systems. Designs of vehicle navigation, obstacle avoidance, and underwater communication systems are based on application of the principles
of underwater acoustics as well as optics. Typically,
an AUV may act as a mobile sensor platform carrying a range of mission-based acoustic and nonacoustic
sensors. The acoustic sensors operate over a range
of mission-specific frequencies that encompass human
hearing range (2020 000 Hz) and beyond. They include the well-known sidescan sonar for detection,
classification and location of targets in the water column, and high-frequency (kHz–MHz range) sonar for
detection of buried objects, and for imaging subsurface
objects. Nonacoustic sensors include electromagnetic
sensors, with important applications in the areas of
geophysical surveys and searches of the seafloor and
sub-bottom, communication across the sea–air boundary, and high data transfer rate at short ranges; optical sensors, including flashing light-emitting diode
(LED) and laser, for sensing, detection and communication; electrochemical sensors for environmental
monitoring [1.10]; and other bio-geo-chemical sensors with a host of applications in marine science and
environmental monitoring. States of the art in key areas of autonomous marine vehicles are presented in
Part B.
1.4.2 Coastal Design
Coastlines are interfaces between the challenging ocean
environment and densely populated coastal areas and
associated human activities. It is estimated that over
1.2 billion people worldwide live within 100 km of the
coast [1.11]. Significant effort is therefore involved in
taking measures to protect the coastline from storm
surges, winds, waves, flooding, and erosion as well
as in accommodating, sometime conflicting, needs of
the coastal population and associated human activities, while maintaining a healthy coastal environment.
Shore protection against beach erosion and storm damage, which fall under coastal management, involves
construction of hard structures such as sea walls, breakwaters and revetments as coastal armor, and groins as
sand-trapping devices, as well as methods for periodic
beach nourishment and stabilization as measures for
mitigation of beach erosion. Structures that accommodate human needs include ports and harbors, piers, and
marine outfalls. Designing robust coastal structures and
measures for maintaining a healthy shoreline, as well
as assessing risks of damage due to coastal hazards,
involve estimating and predicting the forces associated with coastal waves and extreme storms through
modeling and simulation. Typically, the structures are
designed to withstand a 100-year or 50-year wave,
which are statistical projections of wave heights that on
average would be exceeded once in 100 or 50 years,
respectively, and are based on past observations. A harbor is defined as a protected place that offers safety
to ships, whereas a port is defined as harbor with
terminal facilities that accommodate intermodal transportation and storage of cargo, in support of commerce.
The amount of cargo throughput and its cost-effective
handling at a port are based on the number and size
of the berths, storage capacity, cargo handling equipment and the size of ships that it can accommodate,
as well as the impact of local environmental conditions [1.12]. Demands posed by new super-large cargo
ships and move toward automation, in terms of channel depth and berth space and cargo handling, have
provided new worldwide impetus to the process of
planning and design of ports and harbors. Safety and
efficiency of operations at a port are significantly based
on the design of its approach channel, its berthing, anchoring and mooring systems, turning basins, and its
terminal facilities. These and other considerations involved in coastal design and development, including, in
quantification of the physical coastal environment, in
practice of beach nourishment, in design of structures
for protection against coastal hazards, and in design
of ports, harbors, and marine outfalls are discussed in
Part C, which is dedicated to Dr. Robert G. Dean in
Introduction
level of autonomy as well as in the diversity of applications in commercial activities in the maritime
domain. The applications range from automated port
container terminals with automated guided vehicles
(AGVs), stacking cranes, gantry systems, and other automated systems that are significantly revolutionizing
port and container shipment operations, to autonomous
underwater and surface vehicles (AUVs and USVs)
for commercial and military applications, including for
hydrographic surveys, underwater pipeline inspections,
surveillance, asset protection, and mine-counter measures. Typically several subsystems integrated together
make up an unmanned automated system. Design and
development of such systems utilize many of the basic elements of ocean engineering. In the case of an
AUV, while the size of the vehicle may be determined by the payload requirements, the shape of its
hull and the designs of its propulsion and control
surfaces, for stable and efficient motion and maneuverability, are determined through application of the
principles of hydromechanics. Selection of materials
and structures for operations at given water depths
and for durability and reduced maintenance is based
on principles of materials engineering and on corrosion science, as well as on expected hydrodynamic
loads on the structures. Batteries and powering systems are selected for long endurance and together
with other electronic elements require appropriately
designed cooling systems. Designs of vehicle navigation, obstacle avoidance, and underwater communication systems are based on application of the principles
of underwater acoustics as well as optics. Typically,
an AUV may act as a mobile sensor platform carrying a range of mission-based acoustic and nonacoustic
sensors. The acoustic sensors operate over a range
of mission-specific frequencies that encompass human
hearing range (2020 000 Hz) and beyond. They include the well-known sidescan sonar for detection,
classification and location of targets in the water column, and high-frequency (kHz–MHz range) sonar for
detection of buried objects, and for imaging subsurface
objects. Nonacoustic sensors include electromagnetic
sensors, with important applications in the areas of
geophysical surveys and searches of the seafloor and
sub-bottom, communication across the sea–air boundary, and high data transfer rate at short ranges; optical sensors, including flashing light-emitting diode
(LED) and laser, for sensing, detection and communication; electrochemical sensors for environmental
monitoring [1.10]; and other bio-geo-chemical sensors with a host of applications in marine science and
environmental monitoring. States of the art in key areas of autonomous marine vehicles are presented in
Part B.
1.4.2 Coastal Design
Coastlines are interfaces between the challenging ocean
environment and densely populated coastal areas and
associated human activities. It is estimated that over
1.2 billion people worldwide live within 100 km of the
coast [1.11]. Significant effort is therefore involved in
taking measures to protect the coastline from storm
surges, winds, waves, flooding, and erosion as well
as in accommodating, sometime conflicting, needs of
the coastal population and associated human activities, while maintaining a healthy coastal environment.
Shore protection against beach erosion and storm damage, which fall under coastal management, involves
construction of hard structures such as sea walls, breakwaters and revetments as coastal armor, and groins as
sand-trapping devices, as well as methods for periodic
beach nourishment and stabilization as measures for
mitigation of beach erosion. Structures that accommodate human needs include ports and harbors, piers, and
marine outfalls. Designing robust coastal structures and
measures for maintaining a healthy shoreline, as well
as assessing risks of damage due to coastal hazards,
involve estimating and predicting the forces associated with coastal waves and extreme storms through
modeling and simulation. Typically, the structures are
designed to withstand a 100-year or 50-year wave,
which are statistical projections of wave heights that on
average would be exceeded once in 100 or 50 years,
respectively, and are based on past observations. A harbor is defined as a protected place that offers safety
to ships, whereas a port is defined as harbor with
terminal facilities that accommodate intermodal transportation and storage of cargo, in support of commerce.
The amount of cargo throughput and its cost-effective
handling at a port are based on the number and size
of the berths, storage capacity, cargo handling equipment and the size of ships that it can accommodate,
as well as the impact of local environmental conditions [1.12]. Demands posed by new super-large cargo
ships and move toward automation, in terms of channel depth and berth space and cargo handling, have
provided new worldwide impetus to the process of
planning and design of ports and harbors. Safety and
efficiency of operations at a port are significantly based
on the design of its approach channel, its berthing, anchoring and mooring systems, turning basins, and its
terminal facilities. These and other considerations involved in coastal design and development, including, in
quantification of the physical coastal environment, in
practice of beach nourishment, in design of structures
for protection against coastal hazards, and in design
of ports, harbors, and marine outfalls are discussed in
Part C, which is dedicated to Dr. Robert G. Dean in