This will mean that there will be no “coverage blackspots” on any of the world’s seas where drone ships would lose contact with their human operators, meaning they have constant and virtually real-time connections. “The Global Xpress mobile broadband network is a turning point for the future of the maritime industry and lends itself to the AAWA initiative,” said Ronald Spithout, Inmarsat’s maritime president, adding that satellite broadband is “fundamental” to autonomous ships. “Global Xpress is the last big piece in the puzzle to bring about drone ships, although many other aspects need to be fleshed out, such as the legal and who is liable if something goes wrong.” While the AAWA programme, which is being led by fellow blue chip Rolls-Royce, is still in its early stages, Inmarsat expects the research to produce spin-off technology which should boost its revenues before the first experimental drone ship makes its maiden voyage – something expected to occur within 10 years. Mr Spithout said: “Before we get fully autonomous ships, there should be increased demand for maritime satellite broadband traffic as companies develop applications such as remotely monitoring cargo.” Oskar Levander, Rolls-Royce’s president of marine innovation said that while much of the technology required for drone ships is available today, it is integrating it and developing the systems to operate unmanned vessels that is the next step. “This gives us the chance to redefine what a ship really is,” he said. “How it looks, how it operates and how efficient it is.” Autonomous ships are increasingly catching the imagination of shipping companies looking for economies. While crews could still be needed for complex operations such as docking, when a ship is in the open ocean they have little to do other than navigate and monitor systems, tasks which can easily be automated. Crews could be ferried on and off to handle docking, or airlifted to a ship which runs into trouble or needs repairs. Removing humans would also reduce the price of shipbuilding, with no need for heating and water systems, which add complexity and cost. With no need for these systems, the amount of power a ship needs would be reduced, making them more efficient – a vital factor as regulation forces ships to reduce pollution. A single captain at a central base could also control several ships at a time, further reducing costs. The threat of piracy could also be reduced, with ships being designed so they are harder to board or computer control meaning they can be shut off remotely, hampering criminals. Mr Spithout added: “Without a crew on board, who is there for pirates to hijack?” He added that cyber security would also need to be improved to prevent ships systems being hacked. The AAWA project is being financed by Tekes, Finland’s technical research funding agency.
Inmarsat has signed up to research project to investigate how to build a system to support autonomous vessels that can also be controlled from the shore manually when needed. The company is working with researchers at Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands and other partners on an initiative called Autonomous Ship for Maritime Safety (ASM).http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/bri@@ Inmarsat last month launched its third Global Xpres satellite, which will provide high speed broadband connection to cover 'blackspots' around the world's seas, meaning drone ships could be in constant contact with human operators in real time.