Enhancing Maritime Situational Awareness through Advanced Camera Systems

The DDSHIP project aims to advance maritime and inland shipping through advanced autonomous navigation technologies. InViLab, the research group at the University of Antwerp, specifically contributes to enhancing situational awareness capabilities, utilizing innovative camera-based techniques.

Our Research Focus

InViLab’s contribution focuses on developing robust and accurate perception systems crucial for autonomous navigation, especially in challenging maritime environments. This includes:

• Advanced Camera Technologies: Evaluating various camera types (visible spectrum, infrared) to ensure reliable detection of ships and obstacles under diverse weather conditions (fog, rain, darkness).

• Sensor Fusion and Data Integration: Combining camera data with other sensor inputs to provide a comprehensive and precise environmental representation.

• Simulation and Validation: Developing a sophisticated 3D vision data simulator to test and validate camera-based detection algorithms and their performance under simulated harsh environmental conditions.

• Uncertainty Analysis: Investigating detection uncertainties through simulations, informing optimal sensor combinations and enhancing reliability for autonomous ship control systems.

Project Impact

• Increased Safety and Reliability: Improved situational awareness drastically reduces accident risks due to human error and environmental factors.

• Optimized Autonomous Control: Precise visual perception enhances model predictive control strategies, enabling smoother and safer ship maneuvers.

• Valuable Insights for Industry: Providing a robust evaluation framework for maritime camera technologies, beneficial to technology developers, ship operators, and port authorities.

Collaborative Efforts

DDSHIP is a strategic collaboration involving key industrial and governmental stakeholders, ensuring practical and applicable research outcomes. Partners include Flanders Hydraulics (project coordinator), Ghent University, and various maritime technology providers and users.

Through the DDSHIP initiative, InViLab contributes essential technological advancements toward safer, smarter, and more efficient maritime operations.