Can self-driving ships revolutionize water travel and fix supply chains?

Airplanes, trains, and automobiles (and, of course, ships) have evolved to transport passengers back and forth, and now serve as essential messengers for explorations that would have been too impractical to undertake on foot.

But these modes of transportation are about to get a radical makeover: Engineers are now designing machines that can operate without humans, which could transform commercial travel, especially as autonomous technologies begin to spread across the land, sea ​​and air

This could lead to safer and more efficient cargo shipping, which could reduce waiting times for our precious packages, and may even give the military a competitive advantage on the seas. But for now, they have a lot of progress to make.

The case against human error

Autonomy isn’t just the next big thing, it’s already here. From today’s self-driving cars to ships that use sensors and AI systems on the waves, this technology could soon become the norm. Already, small-scale autonomous systems such as unmanned aerial vehicles and food delivery robots are zipping through the skies and rolling down sidewalks.

Today’s autonomous systems aren’t necessarily great at sensing obstacles or overcoming navigational challenges: Tesla’s full self-driving feature, which despite the name requires some human assistance, doesn’t always follow speed limits and even everything can cross intersections.

But if engineers can work out the kinks, these functions can be more reliable than their human counterparts. We experience complex emotions such as stress, fatigue, boredom and fear; any of these things could slow down our decision-making or reaction times in a situation that requires our utmost attention.

Unlike us humans, autonomous systems could tackle all of these challenges while increasing overall productivity. But they’re not quite there yet.

So far, these technologies don’t have the best track record. For example, Tesla recalled more than 300,000 vehicles with its self-driving system because it can cause accidents. Along with Tesla’s driver assistance system called Autopilot, FSD has already caused a number of dangerous incidents on the roads. There is also a driver assistance system that will be mandatory for new cars sold in Europe, which can misinterpret signals or lead to dangerous GPS inaccuracies.

These technologies don’t have the best track record.

Despite these concerns, many companies, and even government agencies, are getting in on the act.

The US Air Force, for example, wants to leverage automation and various types of AI to augment its air capabilities. Earlier this year, the branch announced it would work with the company Reliable Robotics to explore whether they can also automate large, multi-engine aircraft.

Autonomous aircraft could make military missions safer, more efficient and more flexible by requiring fewer human operators, says David O’Brien, senior vice president of government solutions at Reliable Robotics. reverse with the reliable robotics system, a remote pilot would operate the aircraft during all phases of flight, automating taxi, takeoff and landing.

“Our solution will provide the Air Force with certifiable commercial hardware and software to solve their mission needs,” says O’Brien. But the technology’s seamless integration into the National Airspace System is easier said than done, and there’s no clear timeline yet on how far autonomy is in common use. At least in heaven, anyway.

Autonomy sets sail

The seas are a different story – the US Navy may see autonomy in the near future. The Navy recently secured a prototype autonomous ship that can operate on its own for at least 30 days, a tool that could make future missions and commercial maritime activities more efficient and even push the boundaries of what’s possible .

“There are several advantages associated with autonomous ships,” says Scott Savitz, a senior engineer at a national security think tank called the Rand Corporation. reverse. At sea, autonomous ships can collect data for defense purposes and monitor the maritime environment to detect disasters such as oil spills or other underwater phenomena such as algal blooms.

Although unmanned ships are not a new concept, the growing interest in artificial intelligence and robotics has increased their demand in the maritime field. And as Savitz points out, self-sufficient ships could reduce the costs associated with human employees and limit combat casualties. The Ukrainian government, for example, has deployed unmanned vessels to attack Russian ships, with some success.

It can reduce the number of people at risk.

But what about the cargo ships that carry most of our daily grub, from the stuff in our Amazon packages to the piles of fresh produce we pick up at the grocery store? For starters, some researchers think some small cargo ships would benefit from autonomy because it can reduce the number of people at risk. After all, it is a dangerous profession with threats like pirates, storms and fires.

Commercial ships also account for a large number of maritime accidents, such as collisions or blocked routes; remember that famous Suez Canal jam that backed up furniture orders and drove up the price of oil? While such incidents could certainly still happen, Savitz says, autonomous technologies can help limit them.

In other countries, companies are adopting autonomous shipping. Last year, the Japanese ferry Soleil became the first ship to make a fully autonomous journey, and the Norwegian container ship Yara Birkeland became the first electric autonomous container ship.

Autonomous driving will not be rampant

Still, trusting remote systems with all our dirty work can lead to significant problems.

While autonomous ships can complete tasks that humans might find difficult, Savitz says they struggle to find solutions to unexpected obstacles. (A food delivery robot sparked debate when it passed by a crime scene.) So, in places where autonomous ships may have free reign to operate, they will still offer some navigational and mechanical risks.

Still, these technologies likely still need some human oversight: if an autonomous ship has a problem, the problem may not be resolved autonomously and may require human expertise, according to Savitz.

Experts also recommend rules to ensure that this type of technology can work safely and alongside humans.

Even if these technologies do catch on, the public is unlikely to see a major change in their own lives anytime soon, Savitz says. Automated freighters may allow consumers to get their packages a little faster, but that may be it. In essence, autonomous systems do have something unique to offer us, but they are still not smooth sailing.

“There’s a lot of regulation and a lot of challenges as these things start to become more mainstream,” Savitz says. “We may be able to reduce accident rates, we may be able to increase efficiency, but it won’t be perfection and there will be a learning curve.”

The Cusp is a weekly Inverse series that takes a look at the science and technology that could power our future.