The Operation of Autonomous Underwater Vehicles Series

*All three Volumes can be purchased together for £150

Volume One: Recommended Code of Practice

By C Carleton, C Fay, G Griffeiths, A Holt, R Rogers and A Tonge; edited by JC Dering

ISBN 0 906940 38 9, Softbound, 2000
Order Reference C22, Price £50.00*

This SUT publication, produced by the Society's Autonomous Underwater Vehicles Legal Working Group, provides the AUV community with a Code of Practice for use and voluntary adoption as a community standard. The concept of AUVs has been in evidence for at least 20 years with a wide range of operating capabilities and technical solutions. However, the safety and legal framework for their use has yet to be properly formulated. The wide and everyday use of the technology is still relatively immature as an established part of the underwater marine technology scene.
Early AUV deployment and research, as would be expected, has its roots in the military maritime operational requirement, with major maritime powers such as the United States and Russia being examples of leading developers of an early military AUV capability. However, more recently in the UK both the civil research and industrial communities have developed ocean going AUV capabilities of international repute, examples being Autosub as a research platform and the Marlin vehicle being offered as an industrial AUV platform.

AUV development and, more importantly, routine usage is on the increase. This is partly being driven by the costs of ship time incurred when doing routine operations such as pipeline inspection or simple repetitive oceanographic measurements.

This growth of AUV usage has been under a loose legal framework and because of current legal status of the technology, this has meant the AUV community has had to be self regulating. This Code is in some way and expression of that self-regulatory approach.The Recommended Code of Practice has been produced by the Society's Autonomous Underwater Vehicles Legal Working Group to provide a pertinent reference document for the safe and efficient operation of AUVs.

Volume Two: Report on the Law

By ED Brown and NJJ Gaskell

ISBN 0 906940 37 0, Softbound, 2000
Order Reference C23, Price £80.00*

This report was commissioned to provide the Natural Environment Research Council's Autosub programme with an up-to-date review on the law relating to autonomous underwater vehicles. AUV operations are sufficiently novel that guidance on operating practice and the legal constraints that may apply has been rather scarce.

By the nature of the commission, the report focuses on the national and international legal regimes applicable to a UK operator and as they appertain to an autonomous vehicle engaged in marine scientific research, such as Autosub. Nevertheless, much of this authoritative publication is relevant to the international operation of an AUV of any nationality and it will also prove valuable to commercial operators.

As an aid to dialogue, it should also prove valuable to those in the maritime law community interested in the questions posed by this exciting new underwater technology.

Volume Three: The Law Governing AUV Operations – Questions and Answers

By ED Brown and NJJ Gaskell

ISBN 0 906940 40 0, Softbound, 2001
Order Reference C24, Price £50*

This report was commissioned to provide the engineers and programme administrators working on the Natural Environment Research Council's Autosub projects with an easily accessible digest on the law relating to autonomous underwater vehicles. The questions have mostly come from the AUV community and reflect the concerns that it has about operating these novel vehicles in accordance with national and international law.

In providing answers to questions put to them by AUV practitioners, it has been the objective of the authors of this publication to give concise, practical guidance on the law governing problems which may arise in the day-to-day management and operation of AUVs.

*All three Volumes can be purchased together for £150