Construction of underwater navigation lighthouse infrastructure to enable simultaneous positioning of next-generation multiple AUVs

Historically, ships navigating across the sea relied on the light of coastal lighthouses to enter ports and steer clear of hazardous areas. Today, with the advent of GPS, we have entered an era of automated surface navigation. In contrast, underwater navigation for submarines and unmanned AUVs remains largely dependent on inertial systems, with no equivalent to lighthouses beneath the sea. This has resulted in what can be described as a state of “blind navigation”—far removed from true autonomy. To usher in a new era where autonomous AUVs can be safely and reliably deployed for tasks such as offshore wind farm inspection and subsea cargo transport, the development of an underwater “lighthouse” infrastructure is an urgent and critical need. We propose the construction of an advanced underwater positioning system that enables multiple AUVs to simultaneously achieve high-precision localization in the radio-signal-impermeable environment of the ocean. This system consists of multiple fixed acoustic transmitters—underwater lighthouses—installed on the seabed. These transmitters broadcast synchronized ultrasonic signals using Gold codes, similar to those employed in GPS. By receiving these signals, AUVs can accurately determine their own positions and autonomously navigate through the underwater environment.