JAPAN's Mitsui OSK Lines (MOL) has announced that two of its group and other consortium members have applied to the Nippon Foundation to fund demonstration voyages to test autonomous sailing this year
JAPAN's Mitsui OSK Lines (MOL) has announced that two of its group and other consortium members have applied to the Nippon Foundation to fund demonstration voyages to test autonomous sailing this year. In cooperation with Mitsui E&S Shipbuilding and Furuno Electric, the MOL has been developing technologies for autonomous sailing, and plans to conduct demonstration voyages from unberthing to berthing.
The demonstration voyages will be conducted with an MOL Ferry and a coastal containership owned by Imoto Lines, using cognitive technology of ship handling for avoidance and auto berthing.
In addition, mooring support technology using a drone will be introduced in the demonstration voyage of the coastal containership.
MOL will oversee the entire programme and conduct risk assessments, drawing upon its accumulated expertise in ship operations management.
MOL is working to realise autonomous vessels to achieve further enhancement of safe operation by using new underlying technologies and reduction of crewmembers' workload, said MOL.
SeaNews Turkey
