As the prospect of autonomous vehicles begins to sink in, we are now presented with the concept of crewless vessels
Such is the pace of technological change in the 21st century that the "next big thing" is often upon us before we have had a chance to adjust to the last one.
Everyone is coming to grips with the idea of robot cars, even if many drivers may balk at actually buying one once they become commercially available. But what about robot ships?
Just this month, China announced plans to open the world's largest facility for research into unmanned shipping. The Wanshan Marine Test Site, a 771.6-square-kilometer expanse of water and islands in Zhuhai, Guangdong province, will be used to test technologies such as autonomous steering and the ability of robot vessels to avoid obstacles.
One of the Wanshan partners, Chinese shipping developer Oceanalpha, plans to have a small unmanned vessel in commercial operation as early as next year.
In December, China unveiled the world's fastest unmanned surface vessel, the 7.5-ton Tianxing-1, with a top speed of more than 50 knots.
The announcement of the Wanshan project came less than a month after UK-based marine engine builder Rolls-Royce opened a research facility in Finland to develop the technologies needed to build a new "autonomous" global shipping industry. The same month, US defense developer DARPA delivered the first prototype of a robotic anti-submarine ship, a sign that the autonomous shipping revolution has potential military as well as civilian applications.
When Rolls-Royce first presented its plans in 2014, it predicted torpedo-shaped deckless robotic cargo ships would be plying the world's oceans by 2020.
As part of the project, US tech giant Google will provide machine-learning technology to develop an autonomous vessel's virtual eyes and ears.
The promise is of a new generation of ships that could be built without the need for elements such as crew quarters and lifeboats. Robotic ships would be cheaper to build and would carry more cargo, according to developers, and would revolutionize shipping in the way that high-tech companies have already disrupted other traditional markets.
In what is turning into a worldwide race to harness the potential benefits of autonomous shipping, Japan's largest container operator, Nippon Yusen, has said it plans to send a test vessel across the Pacific to North America in 2019.
The benefits of robotics are self-evident in a $350 billion (286 billion euros; ￡252 billion) global shipping industry where human crews account for one of the highest cost elements. Developers are also promoting the argument that robot ships would avoid the human errors responsible for the majority of accidents at sea.
It is a fair bet that the robot shipping revolution will proceed with little public fanfare and little of the controversy that has surrounded the development of self-driving cars.
Marine developments will be based on cost, efficiency, safety and the limits of new technology. International consumers are unlikely to be much bothered about whether the vessel that brought goods halfway around the world to their local supermarket had a human crew or not.
Planes and cars are another matter. Who would happily board a pilotless airliner, although such a concept is technically possible? Even the concept of self-driving cars is running up against resistance from many who find the idea of placing their lives in the hands of a robot to be somewhat unsettling.
Even in the shipping sector, humans will not be entirely eradicated. In the short term, seamen would be on standby, even if only to satisfy insurance companies that help is at hand if something goes wrong.
Progress is probably already so far advanced that nothing will halt the robot shipping revolution. On the whole, it is likely to be beneficial for operators, exporters and consumers.
Still, it will slightly kill off what remains of the romance of the high seas. Where's a young adventurer to go, when he or she can't any longer run away to sea?
Sources:chinadaily
Please Contact Us at：
admin@xindemarine.com
.gif)
