Navy readies ‘robo-tuna’

“It mimics a fish. It looks like a fish. We call it robo-tuna, affectionately, but it is a UUV. It does not have a propeller or a jet. It actually swims by flipping its tail around,” says Capt. Jim Loper, concepts and innovation department head, Navy Warfare Development Command, Norfolk. “We’re imaging this can loiter for days, possibly weeks on a battery that allows it to maintain its position. This is a sensor we can put out there that matches in with the local life so to speak,”

Part of what makes the “robo-tuna” such an asset, besides its stealth nature and ability to swim up to 40 knots, can be traced back to fish biology. “The fact that the front portion of the animal is mainly stationary when swimming is important because when you carrying sensors, you don’t want everything moving all over the place and messing up what you are carrying on board,” says Mark Smithers, vice president and chief technology officer at Boston Engineering. The Navy hopes that as technology advances its new UUV will be readily available for missions such as undersea mine detection and extended surveillance of ships, ports and submarines.