NAVIGATION
How Shell and Orca AI Work Together to Drive Innovation in Navigation
The partners kicked off with a pilot project trialling Tel Aviv-based start-up Orca AI’s maritime navigation platform on a Shell-managed gas tanker. But it has now morphed into a long- term development collaboration resulting in new features that can significantly enhance safety at sea. Here Saurabh Kumar, Project Engineer at Shell Shipping & Maritime, and Dor Raviv, CTO at Orca AI, reflect on outcomes and benefits of the partnership so far.
Navigational error resulting in collision or grounding is one of the highest safety risks associated with maritime transport. Safe navigation relies strongly on Officers of the Watch (OOWs) maintaining lookout awareness and making good navigational decisions. The introduction of tools such as AIS, ARPA, VTS and ECDIS has provided more input data, but correct information processing and action response continue to rely on human factors.
Positive attraction
In 2019, Shell Shipping and Maritime R&D department started scanning for potential partners with technology that could be installed on oceangoing vessels. “Most autonomous ship projects focused on smaller vessels and short voyages, but we wanted something that could be scaled for larger tonnage.”
Saurabh Kumar
Saurabh says. 30
www.dockyard-mag.com July 2023
Orca AI’s automated watchkeeper met Shell’s technological requirements: The solution uses a combination of thermal cameras, low-light cameras, and data from onboard sensors to create an accurate image of the waters surrounding a ship in real-time. Advanced computer vision allows the system to identify objects and classify them. The AI algorithm continuously learns the environment in order to understand hazardous situations and alert the OOW based on pre-defined thresholds.
Another deciding factor for Shell was that Orca AI’s navigation and collision avoidance system was already mature. As a ‘plug n play’ system, there is no requirement for complex retrofits.
Green light for a pilot project Shell invited Orca AI to work on a six-month pilot that kicked off in November 2020, with the system installed on a large LNG carrier.
Shaping product direction One of the things that makes this partnership so unique, is Shell acting as a catalyst for designing new features of the Orca AI platform, such as the platform’s dashboard and monthly reports.
Dor Raviv, CTO at Orca AI said, “We’re now looking at security monitoring, detecting fugitive emissions and we will shortly release a brand-new Voyage Comparison module,” The partners are also focusing on operational optimisation. Dor points out that whereas today, crews have little
Dor Raviv
incentive to choose an optimised route, this will not be the case with a semi-autonomous ship. “There are many suppliers of strategic route planning systems, which are of course helpful, but no one else has a solution for tactical navigation based on high-resolution data,” he says. “Today, the Captain decides the best collision avoidance manoeuvre. However, our system can recommend a manoeuvre and optimal timing.”
Eventually the system will be integrated with the propulsion system, taking control of the helm under human supervision. This will facilitate time and distance savings that will stack up not only for individual ships but across fleets. “That could mean really large numbers,” Dor concludes. “The intention now is to develop a full-scale autonomous navigation platform that can provide real-time recommendations for collision avoidance and shore-based monitoring and take shipping operations efficiency to a whole new level.”
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52
