DRDO’s Naval Science and Technological Laboratory (NSTL) is developing a modular and portable Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) based on its existing “Surveillance AUV” platform.
The project slides illustrate a down-scaled and optimized variant for cooperative swarm operations in mine-countermeasure and shallow-water intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) missions.
The AUV’s forward part features a sensor nose with a high-resolution underwater camera to detect and identify seafloor irregularities.
A Doppler Velocity Log (DVL) enables precise navigation and station-keeping near the seabed, ensuring stable movement and accurate georeferencing throughout survey operations.
This combination is critical in crowded littoral zones, where GPS is unavailable underwater and standard inertial navigation drifts quickly.
The communication and marker part is located just behind the sensor node. A tiny acoustic modem installed on the upper hull allows for inter-AUV data exchange and uplinking to surface gateways like Autonomous Surface Vessels (ASVs) or mother platforms.
A bright LED flasher near the modem serves as a recovery and safety indicator when the AUV approaches the surface, improving visual tracking in low-light or murky circumstances.
The mid-body or mission bay houses an AI-driven on-board computer (OBC) that processes sonar imagery and manages distributed swarm behavior. This processing unit manages target detection, adaptive path planning, and real-time coordination for the AUV cluster.
The lower hull is flanked by linear side-scan sonar panels, which provide wide-swath seabed imaging and minefield mapping across coastal areas. In high-density deployments, overlapping side-scan coverage from numerous AUVs can generate composite minefield heatmaps that are shared acoustically with command nodes.
A central energy compartment houses modular lithium battery modules designed for several hours of low-speed endurance. The section’s quick-swap structure enables quick turnaround, allowing a single operations team to cycle several swarm vehicles through recharging and redeployment without significant downtime.
The vehicle’s mass is likely limited to less than 50 kilograms per unit, allowing for easy handling by small surface vessels or amphibious platforms.
A small retractable or fixed mast equipped with a GPS receiver and an RF transmitter provides positional updates and communication beyond the acoustic network. This mast extends when the AUV momentarily surfaces or broaches, allowing it to transmit mission data bursts or receive external commands. Such features also allow for cooperative localisation between swarm members and the surface control grid.
Aft of the energy compartment is the propulsion and control suite. This comprises a tiny electric motor operating a single low-noise propeller designed to minimize hydrodynamic wake signature. An altimeter located near the tail maintains a constant clearance above the seabed, optimizing sonar return geometry for accurate detection.
Four cruciform rudders enable pitch, yaw, and depth control, allowing it the maneuverability required to navigate narrow channels, bays, or harbor approaches.
CONOPS focuses on swarm-based distributed mine detection. These AUVs use coordinated search patterns with DVL-guided navigation, sonar mapping, and optical verification.
Once suspect objects have been identified and assessed, specialist neutraliser AUVs or remotely controlled disposal vehicles can be dispatched to the precise coordinates for identification or removal. Above the swarm, ASVs serve as acoustic-radio gateways, collecting all AUV telemetry and sending it to the control ship or coastal command post by radio frequency or satellite link.
The DRDO-NSTL SWARM AUV is a complex and portable underwater device. The integration of modular sensors, AI processing, autonomous coordination, and scalable architecture is a crucial step towards developing indigenous networked mine-countermeasure and littoral ISR capabilities.
The design prioritizes endurance efficiency and cooperative intelligence, coinciding with India’s strategic goal of autonomous maritime domain awareness in contested shallow-water situations.
