30 Years Without Crews: An Assessment of Uncrewed Surface Vehicle (USV) Developments Since 1993

This paper is presented to celebrate the 60^th Anniversary of the Marine Technology Society and to acknowledge that the author has spent 30 years working in uncrewed maritime systems. This paper provides a high-level review of developments in uncrewed surface vehicles (USVs) since 1993, building upon two prior works. In 2008 one key reference discussed the enabling technologies that allowed USVs to emerge as a viable platform for marine operations. The paper tracked developments in technology from early systems developed by the author in 1993 through the latest developments in 2008. A second paper in 2016 captured the major technology and mission accomplishments of UMV manufacturers and operators over the prior two decades. This paper recaps those earlier works and goes on to more recent USV developments including both technical developments and market case studies. The paper concludes with an assessment of challenges facing the field and potential outcomes that will unlock further growth.