Autonomous Vessels
Mechanically and hydrodynamically, autonomous research platforms are similar to towed sonar "fish" and ROVs. Operationally, however, known autonomous vehicles were initially limited to rivers, lakes, and bays due to navigation and collision-avoidance issues. Thus, progress in surface vessels lagged behind both unmanned aerial vehicles and submarine-types, due to their simpler operating conditions. Nevertheless, advances in navigation, machine vision and other sensors, and processing have spread ASVs from highly-advanced models to the undergraduate level.
Read more about this topic: History Of Research Ships
Famous quotes containing the words autonomous and/or vessels:
“Without free, self-respecting, and autonomous citizens there can be no free and independent nations. Without internal peace, that is, peace among citizens and between the citizens and the state, there can be no guarantee of external peace.”
—Václav Havel (b. 1936)
“So near along life’s stream are the fountains of innocence and youth making fertile its sandy margin; and the voyageur will do well to replenish his vessels often at these uncontaminated sources.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)