A newly delivered coastal vessel in Japan will trial autonomous navigation and new engine technology
Coal carrier Shiranami was built at Honda Heavy Industries shipyard in Saiki City, Oita Prefecture for NYK and JERA Co, as the sister ship to July 2022-delivered Ushio, but with a difference.
On board are systems for monitoring and autonomous control of navigation and engine systems as part of a Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism project.
Like Ushio, Shiranami will be operated by the NYK affiliate Asia Pacific Marine Corp on a transport contract between JERA and NYK.
The engine system on Shiranami is unique as it uses the ship’s engine shore-based management system and simulation technology which detects and estimates the cause of engine anomalies, contributing to safe operations and reducing the crew’s workload.
On the bridge, electronics have a navigation duty support function to improve the reliability of information on surrounding vessel traffic which integrates visual information from cameras and various sensors, which is then used to formulate a navigation avoidance plan.
NYK said demonstration tests would be carried out in the future with the aim of further improving the safety of crewed autonomous navigation based on the results of these tests and operational data from Shiranami and Ushio.
This is part of Japan’s 2021 support project for research and development in promoting aggregation and co-operation in the maritime industry.
Shiranami will transport overseas-delivered coal from a relay station within Tokyo Bay to the Yokosuka thermal power station.
This ship is designed to be environment-friendly and includes a hatch cover that can be kept closed during discharging operation as a dust-prevention measure.
The NYK Group aims to build an efficient secondary transport network within Tokyo Bay to contribute to stable energy transport. It will provide new services that seamlessly link oceangoing shipping and domestic coastal shipping by operating this vessel.
NYK expects autonomous and remote-monitoring technology development will enable the number of seafarers working long hours on domestic coastal shipping around Japan to be reduced.
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