E-navigation technology and services provider, NAVTOR has received funding from the European Union (EU) to help navigate a path towards autonomous shipping, starting with investigation into the concept of shore-based bridges.
The Norwegian firm was chosen by the European Union (EU) to represent the maritime industry in the ‘ENABLE’ project that has been initiated to prove, verify, and validate the safety of autonomous ships in Europe. NAVTOR was selected due to its experience and technology developments in connecting vessels and shore-based facilities worldwide to optimise routes, safety, efficiency and overall fleet management.
ENABLE, which is to run until October 2019, will focus on testing the validity of the software element of a remote bridge concept. This will be built upon continuous data sharing between vessels and land, with key navigation functions migrating from the crew to office-based teams. Shore-based bridges will be a vital part of their support infrastructure, allowing those onshore to take charge of individual ships when necessary.
NAVTOR e-Navigation Project Manager Bjørn Åge Hjøllo commented: “It’s an honour to be selected as the sole representative for our industry. The opportunity to work alongside established leaders in analogous transport sectors – learning from them, sharing knowledge and collaborating for new technical solutions – really is ‘once in a lifetime’.
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