Autonomous Navigation

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Autonomous Navigation. is a ship operation concept implying automatic and remote control of maritime autonomous surface ships (MASS). It reduces the human factor in ship navigation and, as a result, improves maritime safety by diminishing the influence of human errors.

History

As with other transport modes, the human factor causes as much as 80% of accidents with maritime transport. Subjective reasons, such as: loss of attention, violation by the crew of the known conditional requirements, problems with work coordination, poor health, etc., lay behind the human errors.

Experiments in the field of autonomous navigation have been provided since 2017 by different organizations, including Rolls-Royce Holdings, Kongsberg (Yara Birkeland), Sitronics (Autonomous Navigation Trial Project), Nippon Yusen, Sea Machines Robotics, Wärtsilä, Samsung Heavy Industries, and others.

In 2019, Japan notified the IMO of the first trials of several autonomous navigation systems on a large-tonnage ship in real conditions.

In 2020, Russia notified the IMO on holding the autonomous navigation trial project to probation the full range of autonomous navigation systems on several ships in real operation conditions.

At the same time, several classification societies, e. g. DNV, Russian Maritime Register of Shipping, China Classification Society, and others developed and issued related classification rules and/or regulations.

By 2021, the Russian government approved the national experiment on a comprehensive trial operation of maritime autonomous ships, allowing any shipping company to equip its ships under the Russian flag with autonomous navigation systems and use them in its regular activity.

The Autonomous Navigation term was initially introduced during the Russian Autonomous and Remote Navigation Trial Project as an abbreviation for the autonomous navigation by analogy with the name of e-Navigation concept (the concept and the strategy by IMO, International Maritime Organization, for data exchange and communication between ships and the ship and shore). Then the term began to be referred to the concept and technology of autonomous navigation based on the principle of Complete Functional Equivalence.

The Principle of Complete Functional Equivalence requires that functions, prescribed for the crew on board by the International Conventions (SOLAS, COLREGs, STCW, ISM, etc.), shall be fulfilled to the full extent by the use of automatic and/or remote control, regardless of control methods. “Autonomous vessels are advancing at a rapid rate, thereby illustrating that the technology itself is not the problem, but rather the navigation around existing legal and operational frameworks”

Technology

The technology Autonomous Navigation assumes the maximum use of existing technologies and navigation systems on board, their integration, and enhancement with the key Autonomous Navigation systems, that is, autonomous navigation system, optical surveillance systems, remote engine and technical monitoring system, coordinated motion control system, Remote Control Station, and secure communication systems.

The general architecture of Autonomus Navigation technology systems

Autonomous Navigation System (ANS)

The ANS performs the functions of automatic analysis of the environment, the passage along a given route (in automatic mode and remote control mode), offering automatic decision-making on maneuvering while taking into account the parameters of the vessel and COLREGs provisions.

The ANS includes Sensor fusion Module (SFM), Automatic Collision Avoidance Module (ACAM) and ANS Client (representing an extended functionality of ECDIS).

The Sensor Fusion Module (SFM) integrates, synchronizes, and validates navigational data from different sources such as the radar, AIS, positioning, compass, weather station, etc., and the optical system. This is similar to an officer onboard who has to gather data from all of these navigational devices, by his eyes and integrate it into a single picture in his mind.

The Automatic Collision Avoidance Module (ACAM) keeps to the route and calculates the maneuvers of the vessel to avoid collisions with other vessels and navigational hazards in accordance with rules determined by COLREGs.

The ANS Client integrates all the data from mandatory and additional electronic charts (such as ICE or SAT images) as well as any other available information, and presents it via human interfaces that are similar to ECDIS.

Optical Surveillance and Analysis System (OSA)

The OSA is an optical system that detects and recognizes surrounding objects. It transmits this data in a machine-readable form to the ANS while also sending the processed video image to human interfaces (such as the Remote Control Station).

The OSA ensures the conventional requirements of providing visual observation are fulfilled in a completely autonomous mode while sitting in parallel to human-operated remote mode. The OSA allows us to improve the quality of situational awareness for humans, both onboard and in the RCS. In case of poor visibility, OSA offers such tools as augmented reality and completely virtual models.

Internal CCTV

Internal CCTV keeps indoor video recording, automatic control over the condition of rooms (movement, change of geometric parameters, etc.), equipment (change of indication, switch states, etc.), cargo (displacement, crumbling, tilt and other parameters), and the transmission of this video information to the Remote Control Station.

Remote Engine and Technical Monitoring (R-ETC)

R-ETC gathers and transmits technical parameters and alerts from the engine and other engineering systems onboard. As smart Internal CCTV, R-ETC performs watch functions to inspect and register events and checks parameters onboard without interfering with the ship's rooms and equipment. R-ETC fulfills control functions without crewmembers onboard.

Coordinated Motion Control System (CMS)

The CMS is a ship heading or a trajectory control system transmitting ANS commands to the ship actuators. It performs the same functions as the helmsman, converting the officer's orders to steering and engine control actions. Connection of CMS to ANS allows control of propulsion and steering systems, both automatically and remotely.

Remote Control Station (RCS)

The RCS is a workstation for a remote control operator; it provides remote monitoring and control tasks. It is located outside the controlled vessel and is equivalent to an ergonomic ship's bridge and a central control station.

Communication systems

All Autonomous Navigation systems are combined into one local area network, including a VPN tunnel between onboard systems and the Remote Control Station. This local network is protected from an unauthorized access using data encryption, a firewall to protect the perimeter, and controls and restricts sockets.

The data exchange between the onboard network segment and the remote systems is carried out by wireless communication channels, which could be:

• satellite communications (in any waters): VSAT, Inmarsat, Iridium, etc.;
• mobile communications (within the coverage area of mobile networks): CDMA, 3G, 4G;
• direct radio link (in the line of sight, for example, during Convoy Navigation).

Communication channels must be reserved to provide permanent availability and protected from an unauthorized access.

Regulation issues of Autonomous Navigation

The 98th session of the IMO Maritime Safety Committee (MSC) in June 2017 decided to include the subject of autonomous shipping into the IMO scope of activities and introduced the term "maritime autonomous surface ships" and the relevant acronym "MASS" for the first time ever.

In 2018, the IMO formulated and approved the definition of MASS as a vessel that could function independently of a person to some extentt. The concept of autonomous shipping had further developed after the 101st session of MSC held in June 2019, when Interim Guidelines for MASS trials were adopted.

In 2019, the IMO within its MSC and Legal Committee conducted the Regulatory Scoping Exercise (RSE) on MASS and by 2021 approved its results.

At the national level, the proper regulation is implemented in Russia. In December 2020, the Russian Maritime Register of Shipping issued the Approval in Principle for the complex of Autonomous Navigation systems, and the Russian government approved the national experiment on a wide MASS trial operation, based on the IMO Interim Guidelines for MASS trials.

In 2021, the interpretation of COLREGs-72, grounding collision avoidance algorithms developent, was issued by the Russian Agency on Maritime and River Transport, followed by the relevant draft Federal Law on autonomous shipping initiated by the Ministry of Industry and Trade together with Industry Association MARINET. The draft Federal Law on autonomous shipping defines the notions of an autonomous ship, remote crew, autonomous ship operation, responsibility for the possible harm incurred by the autonomous ship, and stipulates other legal points.

Possible economic benefits of Autonomous Navigation

Autonomous Navigation technology provides several economic benefits, that is,

1. Reduction of some maritime accidents and, consequently, losses from them. According to financial and insurance concerns Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty AG, the cost of losses due to human error in shipping in 2017 amounted to $ 1.6 billion. Improvements in safety and control allow reducing these losses and the cost of insurance of ships and cargo.
2. The shortage of crew members on board with relevant reduction of operation costs ranked second after fuel costs. Reducing the workload on the crew on board due to automation of navigation functions and the use of remote control allow shortening the number of crew on board and, as a result, ship operational costs
3. Response to a lack of qualified seamen in the shipping industry. According to the forecast by BIMCO, in 2025, the shortage of qualified seamen is estimated at over 150,000 persons. The introduction of Autonomous Navigation will reduce the need for the crew onboard and create new vacancies for remote vessel operators working in more comfortable coastal conditions.
4. In the long term, it becomes possible to rearrange the design of ships due to absence or reduction of the crew onboard: optimization of crew accommodations, life support and rescue systems, etc.

References

This article "Autonomous Navigation" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical and/or the page Edithistory:Autonomous Navigation. Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.

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