Hull-Mount USV Launch and Recovery System
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional stowage and deployment configurations for unmanned surface vehicles (USVs) on small unit riverine craft (SURC) are inefficient, requiring manual operation, impacting the craft's structure and operations, and lacking standardized solutions for rapid and reliable launch and recovery.
Innovation Solution
A modular launch and recovery system comprising a frame with lateral brackets, a lifter, and a boom, allowing for vertical stowage and horizontal deployment of USVs, with a hinge for orientation change, enabling automated operation and minimal impact on the host craft.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If conventional stowage and deployment configurations are used for USVs on SURC, then manual operation is required, but operational efficiency and speed of deployment are reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The system employs dynamic mechanical components including a movable boom that can rotate between stowed and deployed positions, a lifter mechanism that vertically positions the USV, and a hinge that orients the USV horizontally for water entry. These dynamic elements enable automated deployment without manual intervention, resolving the contradiction between deployment speed and ease of operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The launch and recovery system is designed to autonomously perform deployment and retrieval operations through integrated mechanical mechanisms. The boom, lifter, and hinge work together in a coordinated self-service manner to launch the USV into water and recover it back to the SURC without requiring manual handling, thereby improving both productivity and operational simplicity.
2Productivity
If conventional stowage configurations are used, then standardized solutions for rapid launch and recovery are lacking, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The launch and recovery system is designed as a universal platform that can accommodate USVs of varying weights and configurations. The standardized boom, lifter, and hinge assembly provides a multi-functional solution that enables rapid launch and recovery operations across different USV types, achieving standardization without proportionally increasing device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The system is divided into distinct functional modules: the boom for horizontal positioning, the lifter for vertical elevation, and the hinge for orientation control. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized independently while working together as an integrated system, enabling rapid deployment without excessive overall complexity.
3Volume of moving object
If USV is stowed in vertical orientation at upper position, then space efficiency is improved, but complexity of deployment mechanism increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system utilizes three-dimensional spatial transitions to achieve efficient stowage and deployment. The USV is positioned vertically in the upper position for compact stowage, then the boom rotates to horizontal orientation while the lifter lowers and hinge orients the USV for water entry. This multi-dimensional movement sequence maximizes space efficiency while managing deployment mechanism complexity through coordinated motion.
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus is provided for stowing, launching and recovering an unmanned surface vehicle (USV) on a boat bull, such as applicable to a small unit riverine craft (SURC) in water. The apparatus includes a frame for removably attaching to the hull, a lifter, a hinge, and a boom. The frame includes lateral brackets connected together by transverse braces, and attaches to the hull at cushions. The lifter connects to the frame for elevating the USV between upper and lower positions. The hinge connects to the lifter for pivoting the USV between vertical and horizontal orientations. The boom connects to the hinge for docking and releasing the USV. The USV is stowed in the vertical orientation and the upper position. The USV deploys into the water in the horizontal orientation and the lower position.