The U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) is getting ready to test advanced automated technologies to improve search-and-rescue (SAR) missions at sea, particularly in bad weather and low visibility situations that make it difficult to identify and track potential targets.
The effort revolves around a proposed collaboration with technology company Lookout. The agency said it planned to enter into a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with the firm to test automated situational awareness capabilities in a notice published October 26.
The notice describes the technology as “super intelligence,” or SI, in accordance with recent administration orders mandating federal agencies replace the term “artificial intelligence” in their official communications.
Evaluation of detection capabilities and operational performance
In the proposed agreement, the Coast Guard plans to assess automated target detection on the basis of SI and to establish a reliable value for the coverage factor to support data-driven Lateral Range Curve (LRC) results in search-and-rescue operations.
The project would also explore how Lookout’s situational awareness tools could enhance current SAR workflows. The agency said the technology could streamline, simplify or supplement current procedures and also produce performance data to inform future missions.
Another possible aim is to arrive at a more precise understanding of the confidence levels and operational effectiveness of the system. The USCG hopes that the development of measurable evaluation methods may reduce barriers to incorporating these technologies into its operations.
Search and rescue problems in difficult environments
The project tackles a perennial problem for commercial shipping: how to keep search-and-rescue services effective in deteriorating environmental conditions.
The automated tools under consideration are designed to detect, classify and track targets without depending entirely on conventional observation methods, the USCG says. Their performance would be evaluated in challenging conditions, including fog, low light, rain and rough seas.
These capabilities could be particularly valuable when rescue teams need to make critical decisions quickly amid large volumes of information. The agency anticipates that field-testing the tools and evaluating their performance will enhance decision-making during SAR missions where rapid data aggregation and continuous analysis are critical.
Lookout named as possible partner, but others are still eligible
The Coast Guard’s interest in Lookout stems from the technology’s technical capabilities and readiness to be deployed and evaluated in an operational test environment.
But the agency has made clear that its proposal does not preclude other possible participants. It added that it does not intend to exclude viable partners from this agreement or from other CRADAs in the future.
The USCG has started a 30-day comment period on the proposal using Regulations.gov. Any comments submitted during this period could affect the proposal, since the agency said it might change its plans based on public feedback.
The proposed agreement would provide an opportunity to assess whether automated situational awareness technology can deliver measurable operational benefits and contribute to more efficient maritime search-and-rescue operations in difficult conditions.
