Roboat: Autonomous ships in urban waterways
Ynse Deinema is the co-founder and CEO of Roboat, a startup from Amsterdam. It originated from a research project by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Amsterdam Institute for Advanced Metropolitan Studies. The initial question was: how can we make city transport more efficient, and can we cleverly utilize the existing infrastructure in Amsterdam? They focused on the city’s canals. Ynse explains: “This was the starting point of Roboat: self-navigating vessels that could operate 24/7, quietly, providing a new method of urban transportation. Now, our company is focused on digitizing processes aboard inland vessels, with a specific focus on ferries.”
Ynse does not come from an engineering background; he studied psychobiology. However, his interest in technology and innovation gradually led him into robotics. Since 2019, he has been working with his team of 12 FTE on Roboat. “Transporting people and goods is becoming increasingly difficult worldwide. Cities are getting more crowded, and many governments are creating policies to facilitate more waterborne transport. But this creates a challenge, as there is simultaneously a growing labor shortage in inland shipping, and there are concerns about safety on the increasingly congested waterways.”
Roboat addresses these issues. “We’re developing an autonomy system suitable for urban waterways. It starts with collecting digital data onboard the vessel. This alone can contribute to operational efficiency, for example, by providing insights into the drivetrain’s usage or offering more precise ETA information for ferries. The next step is introducing digital sensors that map the external environment, such as cameras and lidar. This creates a detailed picture of the surroundings, helping skippers with tasks like docking or recognizing objects and hazardous situations. It is possible to control the drivetrain in a way that the system can actively steer the vessel. Technically, you could already use fully unmanned ships, but that’s not always desirable.”
A Clear Focus
Roboat is a startup, which means they have chosen to maintain a clear focus for now. “I don’t rule out exploring other types of waterways in the future,” says Ynse. “But for now, we see the biggest market opportunity in urban inland waterways.”
How does this play out in practice? “We’re primarily focusing on city ferries. These vessels often go from point A to point B and then back to point A. The context in which the vessel operates is therefore relatively controlled, making it more realistic to implement higher levels of autonomy faster.”
Making Smaller Ships Economically Viable
“There’s a trend where everything keeps getting bigger. This is partly because it’s otherwise not as financially appealing. What I find interesting is that autonomous navigation can contribute to making smaller ships economically viable again. This could also include vessels with shallower drafts, allowing them to navigate with less water depth.” For now, this is still a vision for the future, says Ynse. “There are quite a few steps we need to take before we get there. Right now, we’re mainly focused on supporting skippers.”
Ynse adds: “We now have a system that can be installed with minimal effort. This allows you to take the first step into the world of autonomous navigation without having to make a huge investment. It’s manageable and not immediately extensive or expensive.”
Would you like to learn more about Roboat and its ongoing projects? Visit https://roboat.tech/.
