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Another leap forward for autonomous passenger shipping
A German team has passed a milestone in the development of remotely controlled passenger ships by demonstrating technology on a vessel in Kiel Fjord
The Clean Autonomous Public Transportation Network (CAPTN) initiative in Kiel, Germany, remotely controlled vessel Wavelab from a shore centre, paving the way for more complex trials. It used bridge systems and remote control technology from Anschütz, a 5G mobile network and a high-performance WiFi-6 network provided by Addix.
CAPTN aims to connect the east and west banks of the Kiel Fjord with autonomous, low-emissions passenger ferries.
Controllers in the Wavelab research platform used technology to monitor and command this vessel to demontrate autonomous and semi-autonomous navigation.
“We are now taking a big step towards autonomous and semi-autonomous driving tests in the digital test field in Kiel,” said CAPTN project manager at Anschütz, Daniel Sommerstedt.
Wavelab will be monitored in the maritime test field on the inner fjord in real time from the shore centre. The sensors and navigation systems on board can be accessed and the vessel’s steering and propulsion can be remotely controlled.
Project partners are creating a complete digital twin in the control centre with data provided by the existing and experimental sensors and systems on board.
“In the shore control centre, we can feed new data into our bridge platform, process it and then visualise it in an overall maritime picture,” said Mr Sommerstedt.
“One of the goals of the next research stage is to find out what information needs to be presented to users and in which way, so they can monitor and remotely control Wavelab safely and efficiently.”
Large amounts of real-time data is being exchanged between the vessel and the shore control centre using the 5G mobile network and a high-performance WiFi-6 network set up on the Kiel Fjord and ashore.
The shore control centre is equipped with a large monitor on which camera systems display a 360˚ view in real time, similar to a ferry. Multifunctional monitors display navigation radar and electronic nautical chart and navigational data.
The user interface for Wavelab’s steering and propulsion systems is visible on another screen. On a separate dashboard, the performance of the overall system is presented, such as the available bandwidth, the status data of the system components and the energy management.
As part of the CAPTN initiative, project partners test innovative assistance systems developed directly on additional displays in the control centre.
On board Wavelab, steering and propulsion systems have been equipped with open interfaces to enable automated manoeuvres. Assistance systems include collision avoidance scenarios calculated based on artificial intelligence or rule- and model-based approaches, automated berthing manoeuvres, or video images to which automated object recognition is applied.
“We can very flexibly test the added value of additional information or displays directly in a test environment here and deduce how we can improve safety and efficiency of future navigation systems through a higher level of integration or automation,” said Mr Sommerstedt.
Associated partners are Kiel University, WTD 71 providing the sheltered harbour for testing autonomous driving manoeuvres, City of Kiel, Port of Kiel, AVL, HH Vision and local ferry operator Schlepp- und Fährgesellschaft Kiel and Wissenschaftszentrum Kiel.
A consortium of companies and universities are developing and researching the necessary technologies in a series of individual projects funded by the German Federal Ministry for Digitalisation and Transport.
Wavelab and the maritime test area for the development of sensors and software systems for autonomous navigation are part of the CAPTN research projects Fjord Area 1 + 2.
Riviera’s two-day Maritime Decarbonisation, Europe: Conference, Awards & Exhibition 2023 returns to Amsterdam on 26-27 September 2023, seeking to bring clarity to regulatory directions and decarbonisation pathways for both newbuilds and existing vessels
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