A unified simulation framework for wave energy powered underwater vehicle docking and charging

As wave energy conversion technology advances, recharge of autonomous underwater vehicles has emerged as a promising application for this at-sea power. We bring together an interdisciplinary team to create a simulation framework linking hydrodynamic modeling, autonomous docking and navigation algorithms, and a power tracking model to better understand how a full wave energy converter–autonomous underwater vehicle system could be modeled. A floating point absorber wave energy converter is modeled and analyzed under various wave conditions. We incorporate three different dock designs, using the modeled dock motion and simulated wave-induced currents to test our autonomous docking algorithm. We couple the output of this algorithm to the hydrodynamic model to simulate autonomous docking. This shows that docking with a floating third body is successful in most sea states, while a dock rigidly mounted to the wave energy converter presents difficulty for autonomous docking. Finally, we incorporate a power model to better understand the feasibility and capabilities of a wave energy converter–underwater vehicle system in simulated wave environments. This shows that this system is comfortably supported in the majority of sea states, and provides an estimate of the on-board power storage required to maximize vehicle mission time. •Wave energy converter and autonomous vehicle dock modeled using conditions found at Oregon Pacific Ocean test site.•Autonomous underwater vehicle docking algorithm demonstrated for three different modeled docks under various wave conditions.•Power model demonstrates vehicle mission capabilities with modeled wave energy converter power output.