Underwater drone nears production phase.

AuthorTadjdeh, Yasmin

* A new lightweight autonomous underwater vehicle that can be kept in a rucksack is nearly ready for the production line, according to General Dynamics executives.

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The company's SandShark weighs 15 pounds and can be outfitted with a number of sensors, said Rand LeBouvier, senior manager of General Dynamics' autonomous undersea systems portfolio.

"You could call it kind of the quadcopter of the undersea world," he said.

SandShark originated from a Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency program known as the adaptable sensor system, he said. The purpose was to create a low-cost, open architecture unmanned underwater vehicle that could be used for a variety of missions, he said. Bluefin Robotics, which was purchased by General Dynamics earlier this year, won that contract in 2013 and the program ended in 2015.

SandShark is "designed to enable people to take a basic vehicle design and then expand upon to it increase capabilities, to test out new sensors," LeBouvier said.

The system is an affordable option for the Navy and other customers, said Tracy Howard, director of undersea programs at General Dynamics.

"For the Navy, there are many applications we see for expendable micro-UUVs to replace or expand on current capabilities," he said. The system could be used for mine countermeasures or for anti-submarine...

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