Optimal control of a deep-towed vehicle by optimization techniques

We consider the problem of controlling a subsea vehicle used to investigate the ocean floor and focus on deep-ocean systems deployed through a cable several thousand meters long. The objective is to evolve optimized orders to be sent to the bridge or directly to the ship dynamic positioning system in order to minimize the duration of non-productive maneuvers. Various constraints acting on the vehicle can be expressed such as minimum altitude, maximum velocity, etc. An optimization algorithm has been developed, which may take such inequality constraints acting on the system state variables into account.