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MostCynical [soylentnews.org] writes:

Boating Magazine [boatingmag.com] has a story about the new Volvo Penta self-docking boat.

While autopilot has been available in boats for ages, Volvo’s new docking system moves beyond that. It’s a big step toward true self-driving boats. While cars can be expected to primarily move forward down a road, autonomy in boats is more complex because they have to be able to move in multiple directions. What’s more, for a boat, the road is moving. The yacht uses the joystick-controlled Volvo Penta Inboard Performance System (IPS), which was first sold in 2006. The company later introduced the Dynamic Positioning System, which uses individual drives to automatically preserve a boat’s heading and position, even during strong winds or tides. The self-docking yacht incorporates both of these systems into an onboard electronic vessel control system, which maneuvers the steering according to the boat’s actual position.

When the boat arrives in a predefined “catch zone,” it alerts the captain that it’s ready to activate the self-docking function. Once initiated, the boat relies on GPS to move close to the berth, and waits for the captain to enable the finalVolvo aims to develop the system so that it can be retrofitted to boats already rigged with an IPS system.

The system currently relies on both GPS and local sensors on both the boat and in the berth to define the docking space. The boat can then automatically position it in its dock.

Volvo aims to develop the system so that it can be retrofitted to boats already rigged with an IPS system, and then develop a fully automated boat.

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