Underwater Drones to Detect Ocean Contaminants

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U.S. Navy Provides WPI Researchers with Funding for Underwater Drone Tech

by DRONELIFE Staff Writer Ian M Crosby

The U.S. Navy has awarded Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) researchers Nikolaos Gatsonis and Michael Demetriou with $347,843 for the development of a computational model utilizing data from a system of autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) or underwater drones to provide real-time evaluations of the concentration and source of a contaminant liquid or gas plume as it circulates throughout the ocean. Upon being deployed on an AUV network, the estimator could assist in determining responses to chemical or biological threats, accidents, and environmental disasters.

“Locating the plume source and estimating in real-time the concentration of a liquid or gas plume in ocean waters is complex but critical,” explained Gatsonis, head of WPI’s Department of Aerospace Engineering. “With better, faster detection and estimation…