Remote control vessel trials set to begin in Norway

“Through the successful demonstrations of our remote and autonomous technologies on several pilot projects, including the Asko vessels, we have proved that remote and autonomous technologies are applicable to different vessel types,” said Kongsberg Maritime senior vice president for remote control and autonomy, Pål André Eriksen.

“Seamless connectivity remains one of the key challenges for remote and autonomous operations, particularly in the open oceans,” he continued.

“Overcoming the challenges of global connectivity and available bandwidth will unlock great potential for the deployment of such technologies in future. This project can advance the development of autonomous shipping solutions further.”

Both 2022-built Asko vessels have a permanent bridge for manual operation and can be controlled from the centre in Horten. However, once the autonomous concept is proven, the bridge will be omitted in future newbuilds.

“Our work with Telenor Maritime and Kongsberg Maritime plays a key role in demonstrating the new, enhanced and secure capabilities that high-speed, low-latency LEO connectivity brings to maritime operators,” said Eutelsat OneWeb director for maritime and energy Alexandra Kenworthy.

Low latency is important in remotely controlling vessels as it dictates the delay between a command being initiated onshore and it being implemented on the vessel by a computer and then the onboard steering system.

“There is huge demand for resilient low-latency connectivity that will enhance business-critical operations as well as improve crew communications,” said Ms Kenworthy.

Latency also impacts the timing of real-time data communication from the vessel to the shore centre being analysed and acted upon by the remote operator.

“This project is incredibly important for the future of autonomous vessels, not only in local fjords and rivers, but also in open ocean waters,” said Telenor Maritime chief technology and information officer Knut Fjellheim.

“With OneWeb’s LEO coverage and our advanced connectivity platform, we are on the cusp of achieving 100% uptime for ship connectivity, to set standards for the global connectivity for autonomous vessels.”

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