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MAROFF-2-Maritim virksomhet og offsh-2

Safe Communication for Autonomous Ships

Alternative title: Sikker kommunikasjon for autonome skip

Awarded: NOK 7.0 mill.

Project Number:

269510

Project Period:

2017 - 2021

Location:

Autonomous ships have received increased attention in the last few years, with ongoing research into solutions to enable autonomous operation. As a consequence, autonomous and remotely operated ships are no longer a distant vision, but a fast approaching reality considered by many to be the next big change in the maritime industry. However, before remotely operated and autonomous ships can be successfully launched, it is imperative that they are capable of safe operation, with freedom from unacceptable risk of harm to humans, either directly or indirectly as a result of damage to property or to the environment. For autonomous and remotely operated ships, it is commonly stated that to be acceptable for commercial use, they must be approved to be at least as safe as conventional vessels in similar service. The main objective of the project has been to define an architecture, design and specification for a safe communication protocol for remote controlled and autonomous ships. This has included relevant safety analysis and derived requirements for safe communication, inspired by the lifecycle model as defined in IEC 61508 and EN 50159. The final stage of the project also included a preliminary analysis of using 5G as a carrier for ship-to-shore communication for unmanned ships. This work will be continued in a new MAROFF-project.

Sikkerhet (safety) har lenge vært sett på som en nisjeaktivitet innenfor maritim autonomi, både nasjonalt og internasjonalt. I løpet av prosjektperioden har vi derimot erfart at vi har fått økt forståelse og bevisstgjøring rundt behov for en formell tilnærming til sikkerhet, regulering og ikke minst ansvar og ansvarsfordeling for autonome maritime operasjoner. Norge er i front internasjonalt når det gjelder maritim autonomi, og vi er dermed i en posisjon til å fremme våre tanker og ideer for trygg og sikker skipsfart i overgangen fra skip med kaptein om bord, til ubemannede skip som overvåkes (og styres) fra kontrollsenter på land. Kompetansen fra prosjektet vil med andre ord bidra til å befeste Norges posisjon som en ledene sjøfartsnasjon, og gi nye muligheter til vår leverandørindustri.

Autonomous ships have received increased attention in the last few years, with ongoing research into solutions to enable autonomous operation. As a consequence, autonomous and remotely operated ships are no longer a distant vision, but a fast approaching reality considered by many to be the next big change in the maritime industry. Autonomy is considered disruptive, and the resulting "smart ships" may revolutionize both ship design and operation. Moreover, these technologies may disrupt the whole maritime value chain, redefine the roles within the industry and provide new business opportunities for shipyards, equipment manufacturers and ship owners. However, before remotely operated and autonomous ships can be successfully launched, it is imperative that they are capable of safe operation, with freedom from unacceptable risk of harm to humans, either directly or indirectly as a result of damage to property or to the environment. For autonomous and remotely operated ships, it is commonly stated that to be acceptable for commercial use, they must be approved to be at least as safe as conventional vessels in similar service. To achieve this needed level of safety for autonomous operation, all safety-critical functions on the ship must adhere to stringent requirements for functional safety. Functional safety is here defined as the part of the overall safety of a system that depends on the system or equipment operating correctly in response to its inputs. This project focuses on communication, one of the key technologies necessary to achieve any kind of remote control and degrees of automation. As the communication will serve as part of a safety-critical system, it must also be certified according to relevant safety standards. The main objective of this project is thus to specify a generic safe communication protocol for autonomous ship operations, as well as the implementation of a prototype safe communication protocol for a specific maritime communication solution.

Funding scheme:

MAROFF-2-Maritim virksomhet og offsh-2