Project Summary
The project involves testing the efficacy of the ANT Machines autonomous tractor units, which were discovered through the Connected Places Catapult Maritime Flagship accelerator program. ANT Machines will work closely to the Port of Tyne. The goal of this projectis to aid ANT Machines in elevating their technology to a higher TRL level. As part of the BT 5G project implementation, the trial will encompass a container journey from the vessel to the yard, integrating AI container identification and damage checks into an autonomous vehicle (in stages), and linking road scanning into the digital twin and mobile cameras.
Project Achievements
The outcomes of the POC trials align with our initial goals and expectations. The project unfolded as planned, and we successfully demonstrated the viability of the technology in a real-world port environment. The trials not only showcased the capabilities of the electric heavy-duty robots but also illustrated their potential to deliver substantial operational benefits. We performed coupling with various types of trailers/chassis used in the port, tested remote and telematic controls outdoors, as well as telematic controls from a control station installed in office premises.
Conclusions
The POC trials in the Port of Tyne were executed according to the established objectives, confirming the readiness and effectiveness of the technology. The success of these trials marks a significant step forward in exploring the possibilities of integrating ANT Machines’ electric heavy-duty robots into port operations, with promising implications for the future of intralogistics.
Next Steps
The next step is to use the learnings of the project to upgrade the tested prototype to prepare it for an operational pilot project in the Port of Tyne to increase the TRL of the solution. This could be done with funding support of the Freight Innovation Fund programme It will be a logical continuation of the TRIG project which allowed to collect valuable data on the technology application in a port environment. It also enhanced cooperation within the scientific community involved in decarb onization related issues and raised interest from other commercial stakeholders in the UK and the EU.
