Korea Maritime Transportation Safety Authority Launches Development of AI Collision Prevention Technology for Small Vessels

900 Million Won to Be Invested by 2027
Advancing Integration of Sensors and Autonomous Navigation

Conceptual diagram of a collision prevention system specialized for small vessels. Korea Maritime Transportation Safety Authority.

The Korea Maritime Transportation Safety Authority (KOMSA) is launching research to develop and advance sensor-based collision prevention technology, which has so far been applied mainly to large vessels, so that it is tailored to the navigation and fishing environments of small vessels such as fishing boats.

According to the Authority on the 10th, it has established a cooperative framework with private companies including HD Hyundai Avikus and Bitsensing for this research. The project has been selected for the "Emergency Response Research for Public Safety in Everyday Life" program led by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety and the Ministry of Science and ICT, and a total of 900 million won is scheduled to be invested by November 2027.

Statistics compiled by the Central Maritime Safety Tribunal show that over the past two years (2023-2024), collision accidents accounted for 14.8% of all maritime accidents in terms of the number of vessels involved, the second-highest share. By accident type, collisions also resulted in the largest number of injured persons, with 339 people. During the same period, approximately 67.3% of vessels involved in collision accidents were fishing boats, and 51.1% were small vessels under 20 tons. It was analyzed that 98.1% of collision accidents stemmed from human error by operators, such as failure to maintain proper lookout.

Based on these statistics, the Authority will develop an artificial intelligence (AI) collision prevention system specialized for small vessels that reflects the geographical characteristics of Korea's coastal waters and the irregular navigation and fishing patterns of fishing boats. The system will be designed to fuse AI, camera-based visual information, and 4D radar sensors to identify hazards at sea in real time and immediately alert crew members when the risk of collision reaches a certain threshold.

Performance verification will be carried out in parallel. The Authority plans to conduct repeated demonstrations in major domestic coastal areas to verify whether the system maintains its accuracy and safety under various weather conditions, including fog, sea fog, and nighttime.

In addition, based on the research outcomes, the Authority plans to work with private companies that possess autonomous navigation technology to gradually review the development of an autonomous navigation system for small vessels that can support speed reduction or course changes in hazardous situations. Together with relevant ministries, it also intends to discuss improving safety equipment standards for small vessels and fishing boats and promoting their deployment in the field, with the aim of ensuring both effectiveness and price competitiveness.

Kim Junseok, Chairman of the Authority, said, "This research is the first step toward reducing blind spots in the safety of small vessels such as fishing boats by utilizing AI technology," adding, "We will gradually advance the technology from collision prevention to autonomous navigation so that fishers can work with peace of mind."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.