Austal and Greenroom Robotics have signed an agreement to enhance autonomous technologies incorporated and tested on Sentinel during PBAT for the Royal Australian Navy. (Janes/Ridzwan Rahmat)
Australian companies Austal and Greenroom Robotics have signed a Strategic Partnership Agreement (SPA) to deepen their collaboration to develop systems and technologies that can enhance the autonomy of surface vessels.
Under the agreement, the two companies intend to continue the development of systems and technologies that can “reduce crewing, increase safety, and enable remote and autonomous operation of vessels” designed and constructed by Austal, it announced on 18 September.
Austal and Greenroom Robotics have been working together to implement the Patrol Boat Autonomy Trial (PBAT) for the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) since October 2023. Under this trial, a decommissioned Armidale-class patrol vessel – built by Austal and formerly in service with the RAN as the HMAS Maitland – was integrated with autonomous capabilities and tested.
Austal Australia's Chief Technology Officer Glenn Callow said, “The [PBAT] highlighted Austal and Greenroom Robotics' respective expertise in naval platform integration, and navigation and situational awareness systems technology to demonstrate a reliable, remote, and autonomous-capable vessel”.
Greenroom Robotics Chief Technology Officer Harry Hubbert said that under the SPA, the two companies will be “further developing systems that were tested and proven during the PBAT and may be considered for future optionally-crewed naval vessel programmes”.
During PBAT, the decommissioned Maitland – renamed Sentinel for the trial – used Greenroom Robotics' navigational autonomy software called GAMA, Hubbert added. A data processing computer, located on Sentinel's bridge, was fitted with the GAMA software.
Hubbert said GAMA worked with Austal's platform management system MARINELINK to enable safe operation of Sentinel,
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