Tag: autonomous ships

The 99th session of IMO's MSC has begun with discussions on how to proceed with a regulatory scoping exercise on autonomous vessels. MSC 99 is expected to touch on an extensive range of issues, including the human element, safety, security and protection of the marine environment, for different levels of autonomy.

Rolls-Royce and French insurer AXA Corporate Solutions have signed a Letter of Intent to explore ways to bring a new offering to the marine market, utilising Rolls-Royce Ship Intelligence systems and equipment and AXA’s risk analytics capabilities. The products will be addressed to current sailing and future autonomous vessels.

On May 16, the IMO will start is efforts on regulation of autonomous ships with a meeting in the Maritime Safety Committee. The Danish Maritime Authority noted that the global industry needs international regulation to facilitate the use of autonomous ships, and it is looking forward to discussing the way forward within the IMO.

ABB released a report analyzing how today’s ships can occasionally sail the oceans with unmanned bridges. The report says that current technology may be able to provide the necessary framework, under which unmanned bridges can become a reality. The reduced workload will reduce fatigue and increase performance.

JRCS, a Japanese maritime services company, and Microsoft launched an ambitious plan to digitally transform the global shipping industry. JRCS will use Mixed Reality, the Internet of Things, and AI to train shipping crews, maintain ships, and improve navigational safety standards.

A new industry project in UK is set to explore the technical, regulatory and societal issues of using autonomous surface vessels, integrated with existing manned shipping operations, to support offshore wind farm operations and maintenance, as well as to develop a timeline for the phased introduction of autonomous vessels.

As the IMO is starting discussions regarding a two-year review of the regulatory framework governing the operation of autonomous ships, Nautilus International called operators to take note of the findings of a survey of almost 1,000 maritime professionals carried out by the Nautilus Federation of more than 20 seafaring unions.

MSC 99 will examine how the safe, secure and environmentally sound operation of Maritime Autonomous Surface Ships may be introduced in IMO instruments. Previous Committee had recognized that IMO should take a proactive and leading role on this issue, given the rapid developments.

The UK Royal Navy received an autonomous minesweeper system that can safely clear sea lanes of mines, Defence Minister Guto Bebb has announced. After successful trials the demonstrator system could go on to be used by the Royal Navy in the future to defeat the threat of modern digital mines.

INTENS, a Finnish research collaborative consortium, led by the VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, has jointly committed over €13 million in the next three years, with funding support of €5.6 million from Business Finland, the public agency for research funding, to promote and digitalize the country's marine industry.