Japan recently completed the fifth demonstration and test as
part of its Fully Autonomous Ship Program known as MEGURI2040. Starting in
February, the program which includes more than 30 companies and a total of 60
organizations, demonstrated different aspects of unmanned autonomous ship
operations including maneuvering, docking, and departure using containerships
and ferries. In the latest test, a coastal cargo ship was sent over long
distances during four days including navigating through heavily congested
waterways.
“We have created fully automated navigation by designing and
demonstrating completely new systems through open innovation and taking into
account the perspectives of ship operators,” said Koichi Akamine, President of
Japan Marine Science. “I am confident that this successful demonstration
represents a major step forward toward the practical implementation of fully
automated navigation.”
For the endurance test, the systems were fitted aboard a
cargo ship operating in Japan, the Suzaku. The 1,800 dwt vessel is 279 feet
long and capable of traveling at speeds of up to 12 knots. The cargo ship
departed from Tokyo Bay on February 26 traveling a total distance of
approximately 426 nautical miles round trip to the Port of Tsu-Matsusaka, in
Ise Bay south of Tokyo also on the main island of Honshu.
According to the consortium, for the trial the cargo ship
was equipped with an autonomous navigation function and connected by satellite
and a ground communication line to a fleet operation center. During the voyage,
they tested functions such as remote maneuvering and engine-abnormality
prediction to support the operation of a fully autonomous ship from shore.
The trial was conducted in a manner that simulated the
actual operation of future fully autonomous ships, completing a series of
voyages. The operation included offshore maneuvering, bay navigation, coastal
navigation, and berthing maneuvering, using a comprehensive fully autonomous
navigation system. They noted that one of the most challenging points of the
demonstration was sailing through busy Tokyo Bay, which on average has 500
ships moving through the waterway each day.
The DFFSA system designed for this trial has three primary
components. It consists of a ship navigation system that controls the
autonomous operation of the ship. There is also a shore-side system that
monitors and supports the ship, including remote ship handling functions and
also an information system that enables stable communication between the ship
and remote operation center on shore. Among the functions managed from the
shore-side center are monitoring of weather and sea conditions, traffic flow in
the area, and the status of the ship’s equipment. In emergency situations, the
system can switch to remote operation from the fleet operation center.
“The achievement of fully autonomous navigation is one way
to address issues including a decrease in economic activity associated with an
aging population and declining birthrate, insufficient crew capacity, and
maritime accidents,” said Yohei Sasakawa, Chairman of The Nippon Foundation,
which is overseeing all the demonstrations and research projects. “This
technology, developed in Japan, is the first of its kind anywhere in the world.
We also hope to contribute to the creation of international rules for fully
autonomous navigation.”
As part of the demonstration, they used the APExS framework
(an acronym for Action Planning and Execution System for Full Autonomous).
According to NYK which led the development of the
APExS-auto framework expands on the crewed autonomous ship
framework creating an approach for fully autonomous ship operations. Currently,
the framework includes high-speed computer-based information processing
technology and risk analyses. The computer will execute maneuvering operations
after receiving the crew’s approval.
NYK reports that classification societies ClassNK and Bureau
Veritas each reviewed the safety of the framework and certified the concept
design issuing approval in principle (AiP) for a fully autonomous ship
framework. This is the first time a fully autonomous ship framework has been
approved in Japan.