Advances in Marine Vehicles, Automation and Robotics—2nd Edition

Dear Colleagues,

The Journal of Marine Science and Engineering is pleased to announce a Special Issue entitled "Advances in Marine Vehicles, Automation and Robotics—2nd Edition", which is based on the great success of our previous Special Issue with the same title.

Although we have made significant strides in exploring the surface of the Earth and outer space, we still have a limited understanding of the mysteries hidden in the depths of the ocean. The ocean is home to a vast array of natural and mineral resources, and with the depletion of resources on land, there is an increasing demand to explore the ocean's wealth. The ocean covers approximately 70% of the Earth's surface area, making it a valuable source of untapped resources. As the global population and resource consumption continue to grow, there is a growing need to focus on the ocean. Unfortunately, current techniques for undersea development are limited and challenging. As a result, there is a significant push to develop advanced oceanographic systems to explore and exploit the vast oceanic environment. With the advancement of oceanography research and marine resource exploration, marine mobile platforms have gained prominence, assuming a pivotal role in various marine missions including resource exploration, ocean observation, environmental monitoring, and sea area investigations. These platforms come in various types, such as Unmanned Surface Vehicles (USVs), Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs), Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs), Underwater Gliders (UGs), and marine animal robots, among others. Different from ground or aerial vehicles, marine vehicles operate in a marine environment, which is usually unknown, dynamic, hostile, and unconstructed. In such a complex and uncertain environment, it is difficult for marine vehicles to accomplish one or multiple missions and to realize full autonomy. In particular, the harshness of the underwater environment and the nature of signaling make navigation, guidance, and control challenging.

Following the success of the first edition of this Special Issue, "Advances in Marine Vehicles, Automation and Robotics", in 2023, this second Special Issue aims to showcase ongoing research in underwater vehicles and robotics, with a focus on practical applications and enhancing marine vehicle automation. Our goal is to create a platform that brings together diverse perspectives, including practitioners and leading researchers, to explore the potential of and address breakthroughs in marine vehicles and robotics. We invite high-quality original contributions, including technical papers addressing uncertainties in marine vehicle control and autonomy, reviews, surveys, theoretical works, and cutting-edge experimental approaches. We are particularly interested in novel techniques and advancements that shape the future of marine vehicles and robotics. Engineering and scientific articles related to marine vehicle instrumentation and data analysis, aiming to deepen our understanding of the marine environment, are encouraged. The scope encompasses modeling, control, navigation, cooperation, guidance, state estimation, and localization of marine vehicles and robotics. Submissions related to simulations, real-time sea trials, and testbed applications are highly valued in this Special Issue. All submitted papers will undergo a rigorous peer-review process by leading researchers worldwide, welcoming various types of articles, including research articles, review articles, technical notes, and short communications. We seek contributions spanning a broad range of topics related (but not limited) to the following:

• Maritime Autonomous Surface Ships (MASSs), Autonomous Surface Vehicles (ASVs), Unmanned Surface Vehicles (USVs), Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs), Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs), Unmanned Underwater Vehicles (UUVs), Underwater Gliders, and Underwater Vehicle Manipulator Systems (UVMSs);
• Deep-Sea Mining Technologies;
• Swarms of unmanned vehicles, multiple vehicle mission control and planning, and cooperative surface and underwater vehicles;
• Marine vehicle navigation, guidance, control, and path planning;
• SLAM, localization, mapping, and tracking;
• Sensor and actuator systems;
• CFD applications;
• Structural models and structural analysis;
• Vehicle model tests, applications, case studies, field trials, and experimental results for propulsion systems;
• Control, modeling, simulation, and optimization of propulsion systems;
• Path following, path planning, trajectory planning, and automatic collision avoidance;
• Applications of artificial intelligent (AI)/machine learning (ML) in autonomous marine networks;
• Intelligent and adaptive control architectures;
• Fault diagnosis and fault tolerance;
• Automation systems and energy integration;
• Docking and charging stations;
• Propulsion systems and thruster allocation;
• Software and hardware-in-the-loop simulation;
• Architecture, concepts, methods, and technologies for underwater communications and networks;
• Underwater Internet of the Things;
• Maritime Internet of Things;
• Modeling and digital twin modeling and control of vessels and unmanned marine vehicles;
• Implementation of disruptive technologies in navigation (blockchain, IoT, and machine learning);
• The use of AI for route planning, navigation, and optimization;
• Vision-based 3D modeling for marine applications;
• Marine renewable energy for robotic systems.

We look forward to receiving your valuable submissions.

Dr. Mai The Vu
Prof. Dr. Hyeung-Sik Choi
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Journal of Marine Science and Engineering is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• path planning and path following
• system modeling and simulation
• marine and underwater navigation
• formation control
• collision avoidance
• robotics and control
• cables and mooring
• docking and berthing control
• learning and AI
• autopilot
• motion control and optimization

• Advances in Marine Vehicles, Automation and Robotics in Journal of Marine Science and Engineering (34 articles)