REP(MUS)19
2019-09-13
The “Recognized Environmental Picture Atlantic” Exercise (REP) is returning for its 10th edition, with Sesimbra and Troia Peninsula as the backdrop this year. Bringing together dozens of autonomous underwater, surface and air vehicles for coastal operations, the annual event will soon take place again, this time from 11th to 27th September 2019. REP is one of the major European experimentation exercises for Maritime Unmanned Systems (MUS) and is jointly organized by the Portuguese Navy, the Laboratório de Sistemas e Tecnologia Subaquática (LSTS) of the University of Porto and the NATO STO Centre for Maritime Research and Experimentation.
This year’s edition is held under the NATO’s Maritime Unmanned Systems Initiative and brings the exercise to new levels of participation, institutional support, and complexity. In fact, it is expected to be highly attended, with dozens of Navy Forces from across the globe being represented at REP19 and contributing multiple assets to the operational demonstration.
Image
Ever since its first edition in 2010, REP is targeted at advancing the state of art in networked vehicle systems through large-scale experimentation and cooperation involving Academia, Industry and the Operational Community. During the 2-week exercise, the participants will be working together to develop and evaluate operational concepts and to test new technological advances, procedures and tactics for MUS in real-life operational scenarios. The primary goals this year are to consolidate the organizational model, to strengthen existing cooperation, to establish new avenues for cooperation, and to bring the state of the art in networked vehicle systems closer to operations
As for LSTS-FEUP, there are at least 10 major actions that the team plans to accomplish: 3 are related to the demonstration of LSTS technology in the scope of maritime situational awareness, ocean sampling and outflow characterization of Sado River, 5 are specifically meant for operational activity in cooperation with different entities – such as the Portuguese Navy submarine Squadron, NATO Centre for Maritime Research and Experimentation, Evologics GmbH and University of Vigo, and 2 refer to the demonstration resulting from R&D activities under EUMR H2020 project and the joint research from the Naval Undersea Warfare Center Division Newport (NUWC), the University of Hawaii Applied Research Lab and College of Engineering (UH ARL) and LSTS-FEUP.
The whole action is carried out according to specific mission plans, designed to meet the requirements of each operational scenario, and the expected outcomes concern the technological and scientific fields, but also the Security and Defence sector.
Image
Image
