Unlocking the potential of mini-MASS in UK waters

我们的突破性举措旨在彻底改变小型海洋自主水面船舶（MASS）（“迷你MASS”）市场，解决阻碍英国沃茨广泛采用无人水面船舶（USV）及其重大利益的关键障碍：监管和认证挑战。这些挑战不仅扼杀了西南地区的增长和创新，也影响了无人勘测解决方案（USS）和未来海上技术（FAST）集群成员等公司。海事和海洋警卫局（MCA）最近更新的工作船规范第3版（WBC 3）标志着向前迈出了重要一步，特别是纳入了远程操作无人船（ROUVs）的规定。然而，WBC 3主要迎合了24 m以下市场中更大、风险更高的行业，忽视了与“迷你大众”相关的特征和较低风险。“因此，WBC 3的要求对这些小型船舶提出了既不适合也不可行的挑战，为创新创造了巨大的障碍。这个创新项目旨在提供全面的开源报告和模板。我们将仔细分析WBC 3要求，确定那些：* 在证明mini-MASS安全性的背景下有效。部分有效 *不适用于小型MASS安全论证。对于属于第二类或第三类的需求，我们将提供通用模板安全论证模式。这些模式将证明mini-MASS可以达到适当的安全水平，使用USS Accession Class USV作为一个说明性的例子。虽然这着眼于认证和监管方面，但该项目的成功并不依赖于MCA在海洋环境中进行测试的任何批准。由此产生的报告将成为西南地区海事界的宝贵财富，为设计师和运营商提供小型MASS实用的最佳实践模板。这些模板配有用户友好的指南，可以针对特定项目进行定制，减轻认证负担，同时提高海上安全标准。该项目的主要成果包括：* 最大限度地减少西南企业的认证负担，使他们能够专注于海洋和海事集群的创新。通过简化的应用程序流程促进业务增长。*通过传播结构良好、经同行审查和一致的最佳做法模板，加强海上安全。通过促进小型、固有低风险船舶的认证，开启一条潜在的途径，建立对完全自主海洋系统的信心;* 通过使用无排放或减少排放的小型船舶，促进减排。为制定和发布针对小型质量的具体和相称的安全规范奠定基础。

Our groundbreaking initiative seeks to revolutionise the smaller Marine Autonomous Surface Ship (MASS) ('mini-MASS') market, addressing a crucial obstacle hindering the widespread adoption of Uncrewed Surface Vessels (USVs) in UK waters and their significant benefits: regulatory and certification challenges. These challenges are not only stifling growth and innovation in the Southwest but also impacts companies such as Unmanned Survey Solutions (USS) and members of the Future at Sea Technologies (FAST) Cluster.The recently updated Workboat Code Edition 3 (WBC3) by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) marks a significant step forward, specifically incorporating provisions for Remotely Operated Unmanned Vessels (ROUVs). However, WBC3 predominantly caters to the larger, higher-risk sector within the under-24m market, overlooking the characteristics and lower risk associated with 'mini-MASS.' Consequently, the requirements set by WBC3 pose challenges that are neither suitable nor feasible for these smaller vessels, creating a formidable barrier to innovation.This Innovative project aims to provide a comprehensive open-source report and templates. We will meticulously analyse WBC3 requirements, identifying those that are:* Valid in the context of demonstrating safety for mini-MASS.* Partially valid.* Not valid for mini-MASS safety demonstrations.For requirements falling into the second or third category, we will present generic template safety argument patterns. These patterns will justify that mini-MASS can achieve proportionate levels of safety levels, using the USS Accession Class USV as an illustrative example.Whilst this looks at certification and regulatory aspects, for the project's success there is no dependency on any approvals from the MCA for testing in an operational marine environment.The resultant report will be a valuable asset for the maritime community in the Southwest, offering designers and operators of mini-MASS practical best-practice templates. Accompanied by user-friendly guides, these templates can be customised for specific projects, alleviating the certification burden while bolstering safety standards at sea. The project's key outcomes include:* Minimising the certification burden for Southwest businesses, enabling them to concentrate on innovation in the marine and maritime cluster.* Catalysing business growth through streamlined application processes.* Enhancing safety at sea through the dissemination of well-structured, peer-reviewed, and consistent best-practice templates.* Unlocking a potential route through to establishing confidence in fully autonomous marine systems by facilitating certification of small, inherently low risk vessels;* Contributing to emissions reduction by enabling the use of smaller vessels with no or reduced emissions.* Builds foundation for the development and publishing of safety codes that are specific and proportionate for mini-MASS.