U.S. Navy Tests Artificial Intelligence Anti-Submarine System

Reference News Network reported on August 15 According to the U.S. Navy Times website on August 10, the U.S. Navy tested an artificial intelligence sonar system for tracking submarines during the "Rim of the Pacific" multinational military exercise in July this year.

This system, named SensorMAX, was developed by Lockheed Martin. It uses artificial intelligence and machine learning technologies to analyze acoustic sensor data, update sensor models, and then immediately transmit the updated information in real-time to anti-submarine warfare platforms via wireless means.

During the "Rim of the Pacific" military exercise held near Hawaii, U.S. Navy helicopters deployed sonar buoys. These buoys transmitted data to the SensorMAX system, which then assisted the crew in target identification.

A press release from Lockheed Martin stated: "Ground operators retrained the SensorMAX model using the new sounds within minutes, and then transmitted the AI-enhanced underwater intelligence directly back to the helicopter and fleet via a secure data link."

Lockheed Martin refers to this system as "the Navy's AI portable sonar expert."

The company stated: "SensorMAX receives underwater acoustic data sent from the sensor network, providing a continuous data stream to the crew and sending information to the ground station. When new targets are discovered, system operators label the identified noise characteristics, retrain the model using the new data, and then send a small update data packet back to the crew."

Lockheed Martin said this system allows crew members to manage data sources from up to 8 sonar buoys simultaneously, "doubling the processing capability of the existing system."

The company estimates that each retraining cycle for this model takes less than 5 minutes.

Lockheed Martin stated that SensorMAX can integrate data from various sensors, making it suitable not only for maritime operations but also for aerial and ground combat actions.

The company said: "We can also securely push the software to already deployed aircraft, allowing the AI models and mission software trained by SensorMAX to be quickly updated without interrupting combat operations."

The company stated: "By demonstrating cross-platform AI intelligence and classification capabilities, future fleets can use any acoustic sensor to expand the protective perimeter around high-value assets and accelerate the kill chain in anti-submarine warfare." (Translated by Zhao Feifei)