Lead PI: Dr Yao Zhang, University College London
Summary:
Working marine craft contribute disproportionately to local maritime emissions, with per-hour NOₓ and particulate outputs exceeding those of hundreds of road vehicles, yet their repetitive missions make them prime candidates for autonomy-enabled decarbonisation. Deployment is constrained by unreliable motion estimation in degraded maritime environments where GNSS and vision-based perception fail. This project addresses the fundamental challenge of observability loss in W-band radar odometry under sparse structure and sea clutter.
It will develop observability-aware, radar-centric state estimation methods, validated using Navtech RAS-6 radar through simulation and operational trials at the Newhaven Port. The resulting vessel-agnostic framework enables safer autonomous operations, reduces energy demand per mission, and accelerates decarbonisation across working vessels. Impact will be amplified through the UK Clean Maritime Research Hub and wider engagement with vessel operators, ports, and technology providers, supporting translation across the UK maritime sector.
