Offshore Industry News

SeaRobotics, CSA Ocean Sciences, and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Sign MoU to Commercialize Marine Mammal Detection and Classification System

SeaRobotics Corporation (SeaRobotics), a leading developer of marine robotics and autonomous systems, and CSA Ocean Sciences, Inc., an industry leader in marine species research, risk assessment, and protection, have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) to collaborate on the commercialization of WHOI’s infrared camera based marine mammal detection and classification technology.

WHOI’s technology for automated whale detection has been deployed on various vessels since 2009 to help protect marine animals from being struck by ships, one of the leading causes of injury and death to whales. Under the leadership of Dr. Daniel Zitterbart, a world-renowned expert in the field from WHOI’s Marine Animal Remote Sensing Group, scientists have been working for over a decade to develop the next-generation detection system which uses thermal infrared (IR) cameras to monitor for the presence of whales in shipping lanes.

Installed on ships, the systems can automatically alert shipping captains to the presence of whales up to a three kilometers (1.8 miles) distance to allow most vessels to slow down or change course. When mounted high enough above sea level—such as on offshore wind turbines—these systems can detect whales at a distance of up to 10 kilometers (6.2 miles). This collaboration will leverage Dr. Zitterbart’s expertise to inform further development and field testing of the technology, with the ultimate goal of a multi-phase commercialization effort and a family of off-the-shelf products designed to address the environmental mitigation needs of a broad spectrum of ocean stakeholders.

Across the maritime, defense, and offshore energy industries, operators are increasingly looking for proven, practical solutions that help establish and validate a transition toward safer, more efficient remote operations. This operational shift hinges on developing scalable automated technologies—hardware and software—to acquire, process, and validate real-time data. Effective monitoring & mitigation of risk, in this case marine mammal detection and intervention procedures, will depend on the combined quality of technologies and the professional training necessary to supervise and action certain activities.

“We are delighted to announce our commitment to advancing this important technology and excited about the prospect of pooling our expertise in developing autonomous surface vehicles (ASVs) and other robotic marine systems with both WHOI and CSA’s vast experience of developing robust and reliable environmental mitigation strategies,” said SeaRobotics President Don Darling.

“The extensive data yielded by in-field testing of WHOI’s marine mammal detection and classification system over the last decade serves as proof of concept for an automated system that safeguards marine mammals in increasingly busy waters; now it is a case of working with WHOI and CSA to better identify the precise applications across the broader ocean sector and, in doing so, frame a series of accessible product options to fit those specific requirements.”

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