Article Review Of: "Are Unmanned Vessels the Future for the Ocean?"

The idea of boarding an unmanned airplane and taking off into the sky seems like a bridge too far for some. Many skeptics say that humans will never be flown around on airplanes without pilots. I am not sure if I agree of disagree with this concept, but what if you boarded a boat with no captain? Would that cause the same controversy? Due to the slower speeds and less congested areas on the open oceans, the future of shipping may lie in unmanned systems.

 Large cargo ships go out to sea for months at a time and due to the increased cost of fuel, cruising at slower speeds makes the overall voyage longer but more economical. For the people that work on these ships, this increased time away from home is causing hardship on both them and their families. Not only do the crewmembers suffer from the current economical environment, but in general, crews cost the shipping industry about 44 percent of the entire freighter cost. If we were able to remove the crew from the ship, we could not only let the ships cruise even slower, but shipping lines could save even more money on operational costs. In a world where globalization is outpacing resources, cutting costs and increasing efficiencies in the transportation sector is key to the future. I feel that supporting legislation and investing in the technology required to achieve the goal of unmanned cargo shipping is vital the economy of the future.  

A large debate has been stirring over the unmanning of large cargo ships. Much different than automating, the concept unmanning ships places the captain on land and allows him or her to control the ship remotely from a simulated bridge that is fed with real time information. The process would not only include modification to ships that would include additional sensors and communication devices, but it would also include integration into a global navigation network. Similar to the air control network that aircraft operate in, this marine navigation coordinated system could provide time and space deconfliction all over the world. The largest hurtle at this time in not the technology; it’s the international politics. In aviation, only part of the industry is based on international use, where as large cargo ships are used primarily to ship internationally. When you add the complexities of international law, the timeline to change current polices grows. The director of the International Chamber of Shipping believes it will be 20 to 30 years before we see unmanned ships on the ocean. A two-pronged effort must be made, one in the side of policy and procedure and the other in technology. The European Union (EU) has been one of the largest proponents out side of the military when it comes to investing in technology that supports unmanned shipping. In a program called MUNIN (Maritime Unmanned Navigation through Intelligence in Networks) the EU is trying to see how far they can automate all functions of a ship. The EU has invested a total of 4.8 million dollars to start the project.

The US department of defense is also concerned with automation of ships, but for a different reason. Right now the Navy is working on the Anti-submarine warfare Continuous Trail Unmanned Vessel (ACTUV). This vessel can track and follow subs long distances without risking human lives. The same technology that would apply to unmanning the ACTUV can be carried over to large cargo ships. Like so many times in the past, a conglomeration of defense technology and commercial technology leads to huge advancements in the way the world does business.

The largest group of people against the unmanning of cargo ships is the1.2M crews and families that depend on the shipping business for their livelihood. Fortunately, the unmanning process wont hurt everyone; the captains and officers would now be able to go home to their families at night instead of being gone for months at a time. Also, the technology sector that creates and builds the new components that will be required to unman ships would bluster. The people again the unmanning of ships use safety and piracy as the two main arguments. On the positive side, piracy may decrease if there is no ransom to be paid for crewmembers.

Overall, the article reviewed above sheds light into a future where shipping is safer and cheaper. The technology of unmanned systems is growing at a rapid rate, and I only hope that politics and laws can match the rate of technological innovation. Some workers would lose jobs, but overall, the world as a whole would benefit from this technology reaching the shores of every country.       

References:   

Carroll, M. (2014, July 3). Are Unmanned Vessels the Future for the Ocean? Retrieved April 12, 2015, from http://www.newsweek.com/2014/07/11/are-unmanned-vessels-future-ocean-257091.html