NSWC PCD, FLORIDA TECH Demonstrate Collaborative UUV Progress
By Jacqui Barker, NSWC PCD Public Affairs
PANAMA CITY, Fl - Students are landing real job opportunities by breathing life into broken unmanned underwater systems, thanks to a partnership with the U.S. Navy. The Naval Surface Warfare Center Panama City Division (NSWC PCD) is leading the way through a win-win agreement with the Florida Institute of Technology (Florida Tech) that is aimed at cultivating the Department of the Navy's next generation of scientists and engineers. The program allows for undergraduate and graduate students at Florida Tech to apply academic knowledge to real-world science and engineering experiences by resurrecting old unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs).
In 2010, the first 21 inch, inoperable Battlespace Preparation Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (BPAUV) was transferred to Florida Tech's Ocean Engineering Department. The new home for the BPAUV was made possible by an Education Partnership Agreement and approval from the National Unmanned Systems Shared Resource Center (NUSSRC). It is funded by the Office of Naval Research (ONR), the organization charged with centralizing the navy's outreach efforts to increase the talent pool of students pursuing education and careers in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM).
"Florida Tech got it up and running for the student projects," said Phil Bernstein, Unmanned Systems Technology Branch Head. "The results of that transfer have been so positive that we're in the process of transferring another one. It'll be interesting to see where this takes the students next."