Hybrid acoustic-optical underwater communication networks for next-generation cooperative systems
There is currently widespread interest in the use of groups of autonomous marine vehicles and stationary nodes for ocean exploration, a topic that is currently being explored in the scope of the EUMR project. This calls for the deployment of systems that can act in cooperation by exchanging navigation, control, and environment-related data as well as high-level mission commands over communication networks. Acoustic networks have been the best tool to meet this goal. However, for operations involving underwater devices operating at close range, there is currently a flurry of activity on the use of optical-based communications as means to increase transmission rates. The usage of a hybrid communication system, combining multiple and heterogeneous solutions, has therefore the potential to improve drastically the means available to execute a number of representative scenarios. The presentation will address the general topic of hybrid acoustic-optical underwater communication networks for next-generation cooperative systems. The first part will focus on the description of representative mission scenarios that mandate the use of hybrid underwater communication networks. This will be followed by a presentation of the CMRE Cognitive Communication Architecture (CCA) upon which the work envisioned in the scope of EUMR will build. The results of the first integration trials of the IST´s Blue Ray optical modems in the CCA will be presented, as well as adaptive strategies to optimize the selection of the communication interface to use in order to reduce the resource consumption at the transmitter.