Distributed architecture and control for AUVs in vertically constrained profile: Design, implementation, and validation

This paper presents a distributed autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) system design tailored for vertically constrained scenarios, where vehicles face challenges such as near-wall hydrodynamic effects and acoustic multipath interference. First, the proposed system integrates a three-layer distributed hardware-software architecture for perception, decision, and execution, enabling synchronous monitoring and rapid response to both overhead obstacles and seabed terrain through multimodal environmental sensing and high-speed dedicated communication channels. Second, to address the challenges of control under a vertically constrained profile, a set of core subsystems is developed, incorporating robust adaptive motion control, fault-tolerant navigation, multimodal perception, and hierarchical emergency management. Deep system-level collaboration among these subsystems significantly enhances the stability and safety of AUV operations in complex constrained environments. Finally, the integrated AUV system was validated through lake trials, and comparative experimental results demonstrate superior performance and engineering applicability of each subsystem under vertically constrained conditions.