Do you think that the future of shipping be unmanned vessels?
We’ve bought you a few articles skirting around this subject. There was this one stating that drone cargo ships were the way of the future. And then this blog post from August which confirmed that the research into unmanned ships was moving forward.
This post is a little different, with images being shown of an autonomous vessel, with the bridge being designed with the Captain’s comfort at mind..
Welcome to the oX Bridge. This is what Rolls-Royce believes the future of shipping will look like, with autonomous ocean-going vessels becoming a reality by 2025.
Developed in conjunction with the VTT Technical Research Center of Finland and Aalto University, the video explores a world of shipping that’s far more complex than what we’re used to. Think ships stacked with containers in such a way that hardcore data analysis is required to load and unload; smart workstations that automatically recognise crew members when they walk into the bridge; or augmented reality displays to help the captain identify and navigate hazards like icebergs. In other words, everything we think might appear in cars of the future, but pumped up some big ol’ steroid and put on to a ship instead. [Design Boom]
It certainly is a futuristic vision of how ships are piloted that looks more like an office or gaming setup than a bridge.
Do you think that autonomous vessels or unmanned vessels will be a feature of the future?
There are mixed arguments on whether this would be a good move for the industry, with seafarers jobs at risk,essentially to computers. What we must keep in mind, however, is that the majority of these post panamax vessels operate with 25 staff or less.Never-the-less, it would be a shake up to the industry.
Source credit: gizmodo
