DRDO Develops New Man-Portable Autonomous Underwater Vehicles

New Delhi: The DRDO on Friday announced that its Naval Science and Technological Laboratory (NSTL) has developed a new generation of Man-portable Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (MP-AUVs) for mine countermeasure missions.

The system comprises multiple AUVs equipped with side-scan sonar and underwater cameras as primary payloads for real-time detection and classification of mine-like objects.

The onboard deep learning–based target recognition algorithms enable autonomous classification, significantly reducing operator workload and mission time.

The DRDO said that a robust underwater acoustic communication system has also been integrated to facilitate inter-AUV data exchange during operations, ensuring enhanced situational awareness.

“The recently concluded field trials at NSTL/Harbour successfully validated key system parameters and critical mission objectives. Multiple industry partners are involved in system realisation, and the system will be ready for production in the next couple of months,” it said.

Secretary, Department of Defence R&D and DRDO chairman Dr Samir V. Kamat congratulated the NSTL team on the successful development of the MP-AUVs, calling it a major milestone toward deployable, intelligent, and networked mine-countermeasure solutions. He said the system offers rapid response capability with reduced operational risk and a smaller logistical footprint for naval mine-warfare applications.