Wärtsilä Simulation Technology for SAMK

Posted by Michelle Howard March 23, 2020

The Wärtsilä navigation simulator is an essential enabler in the ISTLAB project aimed at creating a testing environment for smart autonomous vessels. Photo: SAMK / Pekka Lehmuskallio

The technology group Wärtsilä has delivered a navigation simulator and specific mathematical models to the Satakunta University of Applied Sciences (SAMK) in the city of Rauma, Finland.

These will be used as an essential enabler in the Intelligent Shipping Technology Test Laboratory (ISTLAB) project, which aims at creating a technically precise testing environment for remotely controlled, autonomous vessels. The contract with Wärtsilä was signed in the 4th quarter of 2019.

The test laboratory project is the first of its kind in the world, and its unique approach makes it of great interest, and of great value, to the global maritime community. The program will, in turn, identify and open the prospects and possibilities for remote pilotage.

Wärtsilä and SAMK have worked in cooperation for more than 20 years. The university already has a full mission simulator with six bridges at its facility, which was installed in 2016.