A Review of Key Technologies for Underwater Resident AUV Docking

WANG Yun; WANG Meng; ZHANG Xilin; GUO Lei; SUN Zhilei

doi:10.11993/j.issn.2096-3920.2026-0051

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Article Navigation > Journal of Unmanned Undersea Systems > 2026 > Accepted Manuscript

WANG Yun, WANG Meng, ZHANG Xilin, GUO Lei, SUN Zhilei. A Review of Key Technologies for Underwater Resident AUV Docking[J]. Journal of Unmanned Undersea Systems. doi: 10.11993/j.issn.2096-3920.2026-0051

Citation:

WANG Yun, WANG Meng, ZHANG Xilin, GUO Lei, SUN Zhilei. A Review of Key Technologies for Underwater Resident AUV Docking[J]. Journal of Unmanned Undersea Systems. doi: 10.11993/j.issn.2096-3920.2026-0051

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A Review of Key Technologies for Underwater Resident AUV Docking

doi: 10.11993/j.issn.2096-3920.2026-0051

WANG Yun^{1, 2
,},
WANG Meng^3
,,
ZHANG Xilin^4
,,
GUO Lei^1
,,
SUN Zhilei^{4
,
,}

1.
Shandong University, Ocean Research Institute, Qingdao 266237, China
2.
Laoshan Laboratory, Qingdao 266237, China
3.
School of Naval Architecture, Ocean and Civil Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China
4.
Qingdao Institute of Marine Geology, China Geological Survey, Qingdao 266071, China

Received Date: 2026-03-10
Accepted Date: 2026-04-14
Rev Recd Date: 2026-04-01

Available Online: 2026-09-11

Abstract

Abstract

Docking of autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) is a key link for underwater resident systems to achieve long-term continuous operation, energy replenishment, and data return, and its performance directly affects system operation efficiency and long-term reliability. In recent years, AUV docking technology for complex marine environments has evolved from early functional verification into a systematic technical framework covering docking station structures, positioning and navigation, planning and control, as well as energy and data management, exhibiting a development trend characterized by the deep coupling of structure, sensing, control, and energy. However, current studies still suffer from insufficient environmental adaptability, limited robustness under sensing degradation, inadequate evaluation of long-term operational reliability, and insufficient system-level collaborative design. This paper systematically reviews the recent progress in key technologies for AUV docking in underwater resident scenarios, including docking station structures, stage-based positioning and navigation, planning and control, and energy and data management, and analyzes their intrinsic relationships and the challenges they face. The results show that AUV docking technology is shifting from isolated performance improvement toward system-level fault tolerance and collaborative optimization under uncertainty.
- autonomous underwater vehicle,
- autonomous docking,
- underwater resident operation,
- positioning and navigation,
- planning and control,
- energy and data management

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References(93)

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