Autonomous Solutions

An autonomous surface vessel small enough to launch. Affordable enough to risk.

Name: RiverScout in Action
Uploaded: 2026-08-20T01:46:17.747Z
Description: A low-cost hull moving through brown water on its own, sensing, navigating, and reporting back, built to be risked on a mission a larger, more expensive asset wouldn't take.

RiverScout is a man-portable autonomous surface vessel for brown-water surveillance and reconnaissance, small enough for a two-person launch and open enough to serve as an autonomy testbed.

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RiverScout

RiverScout is a man-portable Autonomous Surface Vessel (ASV) built for brown-water surveillance and reconnaissance, run through a tactical robotic controller (TRC). It exists to put more eyes on the water without putting more people at risk: a low-cost, expendable asset that lets a command reduce risk by increasing the number of assets in play, not the number of operators.

See RiverScout in Action

A low-cost hull moving through brown water on its own, sensing, navigating, and reporting back, built to be risked on a mission a larger, more expensive asset wouldn't take.

Filmed during an actual operation, not a test-tank demo. This is what a two-person launch looks like in the field.

Our Mission

RiverScout isn't just a hull. It's a command-and-control package built on open standards, so it plugs into the systems an operator already runs instead of asking them to learn a new one.

A GUI built for camera integration, post-mission analysis, and virtual testing, so the same interface covers the mission and the debrief

Host software talks to cameras over IP radio using JAUS, an open architecture standard, not a proprietary control link

FalconView integration with dynamic waypoint tracking puts RiverScout in the mapping tools operators already use

Most Tactical USVs Need a Crane. This One Needs Two People.

The tactical end of the USV market runs long and heavy: thirty-plus feet, a trailer, a launch crew. RiverScout skips all of it. It goes in the water wherever the mission needs eyes, launched by the people already there, not staged days in advance by a logistics team.

Built to Be Tested, Not Just Fielded

RiverScout doubles as a payload and autonomy testbed for research and test and evaluation programs. It's cheap enough to risk on an experiment and open enough to carry a payload nobody's tried yet, which is exactly what a testbed is supposed to be.

RiverScout is one of several platforms in our Autonomous Solutions practice.

Missions

Surveillance and reconnaissance	Eyes on water a crewed asset shouldn't be sent to.
Border and port security operations	Persistent coverage across approaches and harbor entrances.
Shipboard protection and surface warfare	A forward asset that keeps the crewed platform at distance.
Humanitarian assistance and disaster relief	Flooded ground and damaged waterways, surveyed without a crew.
Hydrographic studies	Survey work in shallow and constrained water.
Information collection	Sensor data off the water and back to the operator.

Capabilities

Environment	Brown and grey water operations.
Platform	Man-portable autonomous surface vessel, launched by two people.
Architecture	An agnostic platform, able to host camera integration, post-mission analysis and virtual testing.
Interfaces	Host software interfaces through IP radio to cameras, using the Joint Architecture for Unmanned Systems (JAUS).
Navigation	FalconView integration with dynamic waypoint tracking.

The mission set and integration details are in the brochure below, written for the program offices and test directors who need the full picture before they need the demo.

Download the Brochure

The RiverScout autonomous surface vessel underway on a narrow river at dusk while an operator controls it from the bank with a handheld tactical controller.

What is an autonomous surface vessel?

An autonomous surface vessel, or USV, is an uncrewed boat that navigates and carries out a mission on its own. RiverScout is a man-portable autonomous surface vessel built for brown-water surveillance and reconnaissance.

How many people does it take to launch RiverScout?

Two. Most tactical USVs need a crane. RiverScout is small enough for a two-person launch.

What does brown-water operation mean?

Brown water refers to rivers, deltas, harbors and other shallow inland or near-shore waters, as distinct from open-ocean operation.

Does RiverScout work with existing control software?

Yes. RiverScout is built on open standards including JAUS and FalconView, so it works with control software built to those standards.

Reach Out

Want to learn more about how RiverScout can serve your requirement? Ask about specifications, pricing, deployment timelines, or how RiverScout fits alongside the rest of our Autonomous Solutions practice, and we'll respond quickly.