Courtesy Photo | Garrett Flitton, (now) NSWC PCD engineer, tests an attitude sensing system he...... read more read more
PANAMA CITY, Fla. – Naval Surface Warfare Center Panama City Division (NSWC PCD) is collaborating with Florida Atlantic University (FAU) on a Naval Engineering Education Consortium (NEEC) project, led by professor Dr. Manhar Dhanak, to develop “an integrated sensor system for concurrent measurement of electrical and magnetic fields in the water column.”
The current NEEC project at FAU is a cutting-edge sensor system for autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) that will provide simultaneous measurements of electric and magnetic fields in underwater environments.
NEEC is a program that bridges the gap between Naval Sea Systems Command Warfare Centers and the academic community to enable a collaboration to develop innovative solutions to naval challenges. Three FAU students currently participate in the program, and three program alumni have been hired full-time at NSWC PCD since 2023.
Dr. Adriana McKinney gained valuable experience at Dhanak's NEEC-affiliated lab, which led to her hiring as an NSWC PCD Advanced Acoustics & Seabed Warfare Branch engineer.
McKinney currently works on two projects: Mission Effectiveness & Assessment with Subsea Recognition and Next Generation Unmanned Surface Vessel. Though both projects seek to generate autonomous algorithms for seabed warfare applications, they each require unique hardware configurations.
McKinney and the other engineers on these teams work to successfully integrate these hardware components into their respective testing platforms for data collection and algorithm testing events.
“As an ocean engineer, I took many instrumentation courses and did much of the same system design, assembly, integration, and experimental verification work as a graduate research assistant at FAU,” said McKinney. “In that sense, I felt very well prepared to contribute to hands-on work here at NSWC PCD.”
An active researcher and International Research and Collaboration Team member, McKinney strives to push innovative technologies forward to provide reliable and utilitarian tools to the warfighters.
Garrett Flitton, a former FAU NEEC student who worked on a previous NEEC Project titled, “Geomagnetic and Bathymetry Based Navigation System for an AUV,” was also hired by NSWC PCD. He applied and maintained contact with Dr. Matthew Bays, NSWC PCD NEEC director, and now conducts research and development for unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) and counter-UUV strategies within its Subsea & Seabed Warfare and Maritime Operations Department.
This impactful research is further amplified by external program partnerships, like the one with FAU, that provide access to cutting-edge technologies and highly skilled individuals.
For Bays, the program is invaluable, serving as a crucial pipeline for NSWC PCD capabilities and talent.
“[With NEEC] we get the development of cutting-edge technologies that have the potential to increase lethality, survivability, and effectiveness within our mission area with new technical capabilities, such as the GPS-denied navigation research we have obtained from FAU,” said Bays. “At the same time, we also get access to extremely, capable talent—[like] Adrianna and Garrett—who directly contribute to the mission areas of littoral warfare and subsea and seabed warfare for the Navy.”
| Date Taken: | 05.15.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 05.20.2025 16:05 |
| Story ID: | 498394 |
| Location: | PANAMA CITY, FLORIDA, US |
| Web Views: | 85 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Program enables collaboration with Florida Atlantic University, provides source for specialized NSWC Panama City Division talent, by Shauna Love-vonKnoblauch, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
