Next level of vessel autonomy verified

Following successful collision avoidance trials in Sigapore, the harbour tug Maju 510 has received the Autonomous and Remote-Control Navigation Notation from classification society ABS and the Smart (Autonomous) Notation from the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore.

The 32m-long tug has been developed by Keppel Offshore & Marine in Singapore. It is equipped with ABB Ability^TM Marine Pilot technology, and owned and operated by Keppel Smit Towage and was the first vessel to receive ABS Remote-Control Navigation Notation in April 2021. The latest trials tested the next stage of autonomy – automated situational awareness, collision avoidance and manoeuvring control – available through ABB’s Marine Pilot Vision and Marine Pilot Control.

Aziz Merchant, Keppel Offshore & Marine’s executive director, said: “Through digitalisation, enhanced connectivity, and integrating ABB’s technology, we are able to generate high accuracy positioning and manoeuvring, with AI engines for marine object recognition and classification. By liberating the crew of time- and energy-consuming tasks and improving accuracy during critical manoeuvres, our autonomous solution has proven its ability to increase safety in even the busiest of ports.”