A cleat for mooring a watercraft at a thrown end of a line has a base surmounted by a body, the base being fastenable to a watercraft deck, the line having a rope and stopper formed by a transverse protuberance, the cleat having an engagement part adjoining the base and a funnel-shaped through-opening to an elongate slot in the body, the slot having a height allowing the longitudinal progression and transverse passage of the rope from the opening towards the interior of the body, the slot leading into a chamber having a minimum dimension greater than the minimum slot height, the maximum dimension of the chamber being less than the dimension of the protuberance forming the stopper so the stopper of a line passing transversely through the body can be blocked against a the body side face both with the rope in the slot and in the chamber.

An unmanned vehicle including a vehicle body, a propulsion system, a maneuvering system, a vehicle control system, a buoyancy control system, a sensor system, and at least one power supply is disclosed. The propulsion system, maneuvering system, vehicle control system, buoyancy control system, sensor system, and power supply are carried by the vehicle body. The sensor system includes a sensor adapted to detect an item of interest and provide an item of interest signal to the vehicle control system. The vehicle control system is adapted to receive the item of interest signal, identify an item of interest classification and provide a classification signal. The classification signal is determined by the item of interest classification and is utilized by the propulsion system, maneuvering system, vehicle control system, or buoyancy control system to avoid physical, electrical, acoustic, or thermal detection of the unmanned vehicle by the item of interest.

An autonomous sailing vessel may include a hull, a mast, a sail, and a sail release device. The mast may be mechanically coupled to the hull. The sail may be mechanically coupled to the mast. The sail release device may be operably coupled to the sail and may be configured to automatically release the sail to spill excess wind. Alternatively or additionally, the sail may include a fore sail element coupled to the mast and an aft sail element rotatably coupled at a fore of the aft sail element to an aft of the fore sail element. In this and other embodiments, the autonomous sailing vessel may further include a camber control assembly to automatically set a camber angle between the fore and aft sail elements.

Multiple autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) are operated by a host platform by configuring the AUVs with intermediate nodes (such as unmanned surface vehicles (USVs)) so as to allow the host platform to manage multiple AUVs. The intermediate nodes act as a relay for communications between the host platform and the AUVs allowing the host platform to scale to higher numbers of vehicles thus simultaneously operating the entire fleet of AUVs. The AUVs may provide underwater mapping data. The host platform may be stationary. The host platform may communicate with the intermediate nodes by satellite.

An unmanned vehicle including a vehicle body, propulsion system, maneuvering system, vehicle control system, rack, sensor, and a power supply. The vehicle control may be used to control the unmanned vehicle in combination with the propulsion and the maneuvering system. The rack may include a retractable mount that may move between a down position and an up position. The sensor system may include a plurality of transient object detection sensors. The plurality of transient object detection sensors may include a sensor adapted to detect an item of interest and may provide an item of interest signal to the vehicle control system. The vehicle control system may identify an item of interest classification and may provide a classification signal. The classification signal may be determined by the item of interest classification and may be utilized to avoid detection of the unmanned vehicle by the item of interest.

Methods, systems, and computer-readable media that implement autonomous seagoing power replenishment watercraft. An example system includes a plurality of marine vessels; a plurality of watercraft, each watercraft of the plurality of watercraft including a rechargeable electrical power supply and being configured to operate in: a first mode in which the watercraft awaits an assignment to provide electrical energy to a marine vessel of the plurality of marine vessels; a second mode in which the watercraft performs operations including keeping station with an assigned marine vessel and providing electrical energy to the assigned marine vessel from the power supply; and a third mode in which the watercraft recharges the power supply from a charging station. The system includes a controller configured to perform operations comprising: transmitting, to a first watercraft, an instruction indicating an assignment of the first watercraft to provide electrical energy to a first marine vessel.

Multiple autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) are operated by a single host surface vehicle (HSV) by configuring the AUVs with intermediate nodes (such as unmanned surface vehicles (USVs)) so as to allow the HSV to manage multiple AUVs. The intermediate nodes act as a relay for communications between the HSV and the AUVs allowing the HSV to scale to higher numbers of vehicles thus simultaneously operating the entire fleet of AUVs. The AUVs may provide underwater mapping data.

The present invention provides an apparatus, method and system for utilizing commercial cargo containers. The present invention utilizes containers made autonomous by coupling a container with a detachable propulsion system, having a motor and navigation and steering controls, permitting the rapid, controlled, efficient and safe delivery of cargo containers individually by water. Ballast units, deployment systems and control via remote units are also disclosed. The containers, utilizing their inherent buoyancy, can move autonomously according to a preplanned or remote controlled route to a specific location.

Summary

The present invention relates to a system and method of self-rescue of people in distress in an aquatic environment, personal beacon (10) emitting distress and location signals and a U-shaped buoy (20), self-propelled by turbines and battery powered, configured to carry out the self-rescue method and provided with an electronics module (30) in the said U-shaped buoy (20), equipped with signal processing and data processing means, operatively connected to the turbines (40).

Methods, systems, and computer-readable media that implement autonomous seagoing power replenishment watercraft. An example system includes a plurality of marine vessels; a plurality of watercraft, each watercraft of the plurality of watercraft including a rechargeable electrical power supply and being configured to operate in: a first mode in which the watercraft awaits an assignment to provide electrical energy to a marine vessel of the plurality of marine vessels; a second mode in which the watercraft performs operations including keeping station with an assigned marine vessel and providing electrical energy to the assigned marine vessel from the power supply; and a third mode in which the watercraft recharges the power supply from a charging station. The system includes a controller configured to perform operations comprising: transmitting, to a first watercraft, an instruction indicating an assignment of the first watercraft to provide electrical energy to a first marine vessel.