Antwerp testing autonomous vessel

Echodrone will be used to measure water depth.    The Port of Antwerp has introduced a fully automatic sounding boat to measure water depth. 
   The Echodrone is a prototype that is being developed to supplement the other operational sounding boat, the Echo. Both vessels carry out measurements of the water depth everywhere in the port to ensure safe passage for ships. 
   The cloud-based technology — a first — has been developed in partnership between the Port Authority and dotOcean, according to the port, which said this is just one of its initiatives in the field of digital innovation.
   “As a world-class player we as a port aim to be a leader in developing innovative concepts,” said Piet Opstaele, innovation enablement manager for the Antwerp Port Authority. “In this way we are laying the foundations for the ‘smart port’ of the future in which digital technologies are used to make the land-based and water-based operations more flexible, responsive and efficient.”
   The Echodrone is smaller than the Echo and is fully autonomous, making it more nimble and flexible so that it can even operate in heavy shipping traffic where the Echo would be unable to go.
   Wim Defevere, senior technical manager for nautical access for the Antwerp Port Authority, said, “The Echodrone is currently undergoing extensive trials. Once these have been completed it will be based in the Deurganck dock, where it will be fully operational alongside the Echo to measure the water depth of the available berths at the busiest of the tidal quays for handling containers.”
   Unique technology for guiding and operating the Echodrone was developed in collaboration with dotOcean, a maritime technology company based in Brugge, Belgium.
   “This technology is based on assembling detailed information in the cloud,” said dotOcean co-founder Koen Geirnaert. “Data from all sorts of devices throughout the port is made available over the internet and then selectively compiled and translated into useful information by algorithms in the cloud. 
   “The Echodrone is designed to navigate fully independently using this verified data, unlike the previous generation of automatic vessels that had to rely on their own onboard sensors. This makes the Echodrone one of the first of a completely new generation of robots,” Geirnaert said.
   Opstaele added, “With the help of the Echodrone, it will be possible in the future to carry out other types of measurements, such as environmental surveys, inspecting quay walls and so on. This technology is a real breakthrough for us in our quest for smart solutions for the port of the future. It is also a good example of our role as an initiator and facilitator of innovative initiatives.”