# Mine/Obstacle Detection

**R-2A activity** of project 0000 — Mine and Expeditionary Warfare Applied Research  
**Program element:** 0602782N — Mine and Expeditionary Warfare Applied Research  
**Component:** U.S. Navy · **Budget Activity:** 2  
**Vintage:** President's Budget PB2027  
**Canonical URL:** https://hitchintel.com/programs/0602782N/0000/a1  
**Parent:** https://hitchintel.com/programs/0602782N/0000

## Summary

This activity requests $13.2M in FY2027, 53% of project 0000, up 40% on FY2026. The R-2A exhibit describes it across FY2026–FY2027, including what the FY2027 money is planned to buy.

## What the FY2027 request buys

**FY2027 planned work.** -Continue autonomous vehicle development efforts for coupling autonomous vehicles with their sensor payloads. -Continue efforts to characterize flow generated by biomimetic propulsion approaches. -Continue development and demonstration of adaptive control systems for bio-inspired unmanned underwater vehicles advancing oscillating fin propulsor models and embedding these models on vehicle hardware. The objective is to increase vehicle efficiency, maneuverability and sensing effectiveness in complex environments. -Continue MCM sensor development of next-generation small, highly capable MCM sensors. Specific efforts include sensors, electronics, and computing technology. The objective is to increase deployment options for unmanned systems. -Continue Mine & Expeditionary Warfare (Target Recognition and Signal Processing) machine learning algorithm development efforts that yield principled understanding of sensor information content, are robust to challenging operating conditions and produce human-interpretable or traceable predictions. The objective is to improve operator trust in autonomous system behavior and improve automated performance. -Continue development of robotic technologies to respond to detected threats. Specific effort will include dexterity, haptics and algorithms to achieve human-like behaviors. The objective is to sense and interact with the environment and threats. -Continue development of a learning and planning framework, conducting field experiments that demonstrate simultaneous exploration and navigation in an unknown environment while attempting to execute a complex mission. The objective is to improve autonomous search capabilities for unmanned systems. -Continue development of cooperative autonomous underwater vehicle behaviors that adapt to dynamic and uncertain environments. -Continue advanced underwater optical imager technology focusing on laboratory measurements in various turbidity conditions and environments. The objective is to improve optical sensing performance in turbid environments. -Continue efforts that lead to increased vehicle endurance, improved data exfiltration rates, and sophisticated networking capabilities to expand reach. -Continue development of autonomous technologies to detect, classify underwater mobile threats. The objective is to improve the search/localization effectiveness and mission duration of autonomous systems. -Continue development of low Size, Weight and Power (SWaP) neuromorphic computing payloads for mine countermeasure UUVs. The objective is to improve machine learning and autonomy performance for high-data rate sensor inputs on small vehicle form-factors. -Continue Mine Countermeasures (MCM) Data (Mine & Expeditionary Warfare) efforts to aggregate, curate and interrogate real and simulated data sets for in-situ algorithm adaptation, optimization, and performance assessment. The objective is to enable unmanned systems to operate flexibly across a wide range of dynamic and unstructured environments. -Continue applied research efforts and seabed experimentation in shallow and deep waters that yield descriptions and parameterizations of sediments applicable to modern mine warfare systems. The objective is to provide improved environmental descriptors of the seabed environment for planning and operations across all aspects of mine warfare.

**FY2026 to FY2027 change.** Funding increase from FY 2026 to FY 2027 is due to increased research in autonomous vehicle development efforts for coupling autonomous vehicles with their sensor payloads.

## Before the request year

**FY2026 plans — current year.** -Continue autonomous vehicle development efforts for coupling autonomous vehicles with their sensor payloads. -Continue efforts to characterize flow generated by biomimetic propulsion approaches. -Continue development and demonstration of adaptive control systems for bio-inspired unmanned underwater vehicles advancing oscillating fin propulsor models and embedding these models on vehicle hardware. The objective is to increase vehicle efficiency, maneuverability and sensing effectiveness in complex environments. -Continue MCM sensor development of next-generation small, highly capable MCM sensors. Specific efforts include sensors, electronics, and computing technology. The objective is to increase deployment options for unmanned systems. -Continue Mine & Expeditionary Warfare (Target Recognition and Signal Processing) machine learning algorithm development efforts that yield principled understanding of sensor information content, are robust to challenging operating conditions and produce human-interpretable or traceable predictions. The objective is to improve operator trust in autonomous system behavior and improve automated performance. -Continue development of robotic technologies to respond to detected threats. Specific effort will include dexterity, haptics and algorithms to achieve human-like behaviors. The objective is to sense and interact with the environment and threats. -Continue development of a learning and planning framework, conducting field experiments that demonstrate simultaneous exploration and navigation in an unknown environment while attempting to execute a complex mission. The objective is to improve autonomous search capabilities for unmanned systems. -Continue development of cooperative autonomous underwater vehicle behaviors that adapt to dynamic and uncertain environments. -Continue advanced underwater optical imager technology focusing on laboratory measurements in various turbidity conditions and environments. The objective is to improve optical sensing performance in turbid environments. -Continue efforts that lead to increased vehicle endurance, improved data exfiltration rates, and sophisticated networking capabilities to expand reach. -Continue development of autonomous technologies to detect, classify underwater mobile threats. The objective is to improve the search/localization effectiveness and mission duration of autonomous systems. -Continue development of low Size, Weight and Power (SWaP) neuromorphic computing payloads for mine countermeasure UUVs. The objective is to improve machine learning and autonomy performance for high-data rate sensor inputs on small vehicle form-factors. -Continue Mine Countermeasures (MCM) Data (Mine & Expeditionary Warfare) efforts to aggregate, curate and interrogate real and simulated data sets for in-situ algorithm adaptation, optimization, and performance assessment. The objective is to enable unmanned systems to operate flexibly across a wide range of dynamic and unstructured environments. -Initiate applied research efforts and seabed experimentation in shallow and deep waters that yield descriptions and parameterizations of sediments applicable to modern mine warfare systems. The objective is to provide improved environmental descriptors of the seabed environment for planning and operations across all aspects of mine warfare.

## Funding

| Fiscal Year | Estimate Type | Amount ($M) |
|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | Actual | 15.4 |
| FY2026 | Enacted | 9.4 |
| FY2027 | Request | 13.2 |

> Prior, current and budget year only — an R-2A activity carries no five-year plan. It sums exactly into its project in the request year and not necessarily in any other.

## Other activities in project 0000

- Special Warfare/EOD — FY2027 9.2
- Mine Technology — FY2027 1.8
- Mine/Obstacle Neutralization — FY2027 0.4

## Source & machine access

- **Source:** FY2027 Department of the Navy RDT&E Budget Justification, Exhibit R-2A, PE 0602782N project 0000 (PB PB2027). Narrative is the government's own text.
- **No marks, no contractors at this grain** — congressional marks land on the program element and R-3 performers on the project.
- **MCP:** `mcp.hitchintel.com` — `budget_get_activity`.

*HitchAI is an independent intelligence service, not affiliated with the U.S. Department of Defense. Budget figures are requests/estimates, not obligations.*