January 25, 2022

TOKYO-Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd. (MOL; President & CEO: Takeshi Hashimoto) today announced that together with its two group companies and the following consortium partners have successfully concluded the world's first sea trial of unmanned ビンゴ 5 の 結果 operation from port to port (departure port: Tsuruga Port in Fukui Prefecture, arrival port: Sakai Port in Tottori Prefecture) on 24th and 25th January, as part of the unmanned ビンゴ 5 の 結果 project MEGURI2040 (Note 1) led by The Nippon Foundation.
The following two points are major features of the consortium's role in the MEGURI2040 unmanned ビンゴ 5 の 結果 operation projects:
(1) The consortium conducted the sea trial with two different type of ships: a coastal containership and a coastal car ferry, aimed at using the results to develop versatile technologies by identifying similarities and differences between the two ビンゴ 5 の 結果 types.
(2) It conducted mooring tests using a drone in a move toward automated mooring operation.
Since MEGURI2040's inception in 2020, the consortium has conducted various elemental experiments to realize autonomous ship operation. In October 2021, MOL Marine & Engineering ビンゴ 5 の 結果., Ltd. conducted a safety verification test using its owned 3D simulator before this sea trial.
(Consortium members and its main roles)
| Company name | Main roles |
|---|---|
| MOL | Overall coordination, risk evaluation |
| Mitsui E&S Shipbuilding ビンゴ 5 の 結果., Ltd. (MES-S; President: Isamu Funazu, Headquarters: Chuo-ku, Tokyo) | Development of "Judgement" and "ビンゴ 5 の 結果 Operation" functions (Automated collision avoidance routing, automated ビンゴ 5 の 結果 operation in port, automated berthing/unberthing operation) |
| Furuno Electric ビンゴ 5 の 結果., Ltd. (President: Yukio Furuno; Headquarters: Nishinomiya-shi, Hyogo Prefecture) | Development of "Cognitive" function (Integration of information from sensors during navigation and at berthing) |
| Imoto Lines, Ltd. (President: Takayuki Imoto; Headquarters: Kobe-shi, Hyogo Prefecture) | Provide test ビンゴ 5 の 結果 and seafarers, develop ビンゴ 5 の 結果 operation plan. |
| A.L.I. Technologies, Inc. (A.L.I.; President: Daisuke Katano; Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo) | Development of mooring support technology (Throwing a heaving line from the ビンゴ 5 の 結果 to the pier using a unmanned drone) |
| MOL Ferry ビンゴ 5 の 結果., Ltd. (President: Naotoshi Omoto; Headquarters: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo) | Provide test ビンゴ 5 の 結果 and seafarers, develop ビンゴ 5 の 結果 operation plan. |
| MOL Marine & Engineering ビンゴ 5 の 結果., Ltd. (President: Takashi Nakajima; Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo) | Create simulation program of collision avoidance navigation/ berthing/unberthing for testing automated function of those scene. |
For autonomous navigation, the ships followed a previously formulated route using the MES-S-developed autonomous ビンゴ 5 の 結果 operation control system, in consideration of the following elements.
Information on other ships and obstacles/debris on the set route was gathered by the Furuno Electric-developed autonomous surrounding information integration system (measures and displays positions, speed, types of nearby ships, and position of obstacles/debris by integrating information gained by cognition through radar, AIS, and camera images). Based on the integrated information, the ビンゴ 5 の 結果 navigated the safe route formulated by the autonomous collision avoidance routing system.

Autonomous berthing and unberthing require especially delicate handling, so the ビンゴ 5 の 結果 berthed and unberthed using information from the Furuno Electric-developed berthing/unberthing support sensor (equipment that calculates and visually displays accurate relative distances and relative angles between the pier and hull from information gathered by LiDAR/camera/satellite compass).
"Automated mooring" is an element of the consortium’s project. Normally, a crewmember on the ビンゴ 5 の 結果 passes the heaving line (to moor the ビンゴ 5 の 結果 in port) by throwing it to a worker on the pier. In this sea trial, the A.L.I.-developed automatic flight drone carried the line to the pier. As technology advances in the future, this is expected to become an alternative approach to mooring operations, which is a heavy burden on seafarers.
In order to develop highly versatile technologies, the consortium plans a sea trial of autonomous navigation using the coastal car ferry "Sunflower Shiretoko," which has different characteristics from the coastal containership.
(Plan for future sea trial)
| ビンゴ 5 の 結果 | ビンゴ 5 の 結果 type | Sea trial route | Schedule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunflower Shiretoko (owned by MOL Ferry) | Coastal car ferry | From Tomakomai To Oarai | February 2022 |
The consortium continually aims to reduce the workload on seafarers and ensure safe, secure marine traffic, through MEGURI2040 initiatives to realize autonomous sailing.
(Note 1) Please refer to June 15, 2020, press release: Initiative to Realize Autonomous Sailing Ready to Start Demonstration Voyages - Concluding Contract in R&D Grant Program Related to Unmanned Ships with the Nippon Foundation -
