Project Summary

We are developing a small scale prototype zero-emission, wind-powered uncrewed surface vessel to automate and decarbonise meteorological and oceanographic (metocean) data collection for the offshore renewables sector.? The vessel can be launched from small ports or slipways, reducing reliance on large ships and the infrastructure they require, cutting operational emissions by up to 99%. This project will inform the design of a larger commercial platform capable of autonomous transits and year-long deployments, creating a low-cost and sustainable alternative to traditional metocean campaigns and support a pathway to commercialisation.

Project Achievements

We were able to develop and test a ground-up software stack written in Rust for controlling an autonomous surface vessel. We also developed a bespoke electronics board with all the hardware for controlling the vessel and communicating with shore-based users. Finally we created a sailing simulator for validating our software and a user interface to act as a “command and control centre”. This allowed us to establish and perform many of the procedures for safely deploying the system including automated software testing, hardware-in-the-loop testing and workshop testing all of which need to be conducted prior to testing on the water.

Conclusions

We have been able to significantly accelerate our time to commercial readiness, cutting approximately five months from our original timeline, by dedicating focused effort to the critical electronics and software development for the vessel. This period allowed us to firmly establish core engineering practices including hardware-in-the loop testing and software deployment infrastructure. These practices, combined with detailed engineering proposals, are crucial for ensuring the vessel’s safe deployment and will scale effectively as Norsail grows. The TRIG program has been instrumental in the development of the vessel by allowing dedicated work on the electronics and software; accelerating our pathway to the commercial readiness of our zero-carbon autonomous boat.

Next Steps

Our next steps are to test the vessel in increasingly representative environments starting with a lake before moving to near-shore sea trials. This will include significant long endurance testing as we need to prove that the vessel can operate for months at a time. We will evaluate performance and identify any improvements required for a commercially ready Version 2. We will also be engaging with potential customers and investors to further accelerate our path to commercial readiness and ensure we have product-market fit.