DARPA

We have successfully completed a sheltered-water autonomous towing demonstration for @DARPA’s Pulling Guard program. In under six months, our team moved from selection for the program to designing, building, and testing a new vessel created for this effort.

During the demonstration, the uncrewed vessel autonomously executed every phase of the towing concept of operations, from station-keeping and connection through towing transit and a controlled disconnect. Every planned test objective was met, including proving that autonomous winch control could be fully integrated with Saronic’s existing autonomy stack and operate as a single coordinated system throughout the sequence.

Pulling Guard aims to develop flexible, semi-autonomous surface vessel systems that can escort and help protect unarmed logistics vessels at sea. Reliable autonomous towing and station-keeping are foundational to that concept, and proving these capabilities early reduces technical risk and generates real-world data that will inform the platform’s design and development as the program advances. We are proud to continue working with DARPA to move that concept closer to reality.

Our Mission Robotic Vehicle (MRV) just hit a major milestone: Tests are complete, and it's now on the move.

MRV is beginning its mission to strengthen satellite resiliency and extend their life through on-orbit servicing, repairs, and upgrades. 🔧