Page 18: of Marine News Magazine (July 2022)

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What is a MASS and are they regulated by the COLREGS?

The IMO de? nes a MASS as a vessel which, to a varying degree, can operate independent of human interaction, up to an including a fully autonomous vessel with an operat- ing system that makes decisions and determines actions by itself with no seafarers on board. COLREGS Rule 3(a), on the other hand, de? nes a vessel to include “every descrip- tion of watercraft . . . used or capable of being used as a means of transportation on water.” Further, the COL-

REGS applies to “all vessels upon the high seas” and “in waters navigable by seagoing vessels.” Despite some com- mentators’ arguments to the contrary, it appears from its plain language that the COLREGS de? nition of a vessel is broad enough to include MASS.

Why focus on the COLREGS?

Despite the rapid development of autonomous vessel technology, for a long time, the large majority of world’s ? eet will still be manned. But, with autonomous vessels al- ready plying the world’s navigable waters, it is evitable that manned and unmanned vessels will interact regularly. The

IMO has recognized this new reality. The scoping exercise identi? ed the need to amend the regulatory framework of the COLREGS to govern MASS’s “interaction and co- existence with manned ships.”

The question for the marine industry and autonomous vessel developers then is: whether collision avoidance can be automated? Can the industry reconcile the existing col- lision avoidance rules with what has been called a “para- digm shift” to vessels navigated with little or no human involvement? The current rules rely on human senses and decision-making faculties. But autonomy relies on tech- nology for information acquisition and decision making.

The challenge with be replicating the human capabilities with arti? cial equivalents in a way that is understandable and predicable by the operators of manned vessels.

MASS COLREGS challenges

One challenge to reconciling MASS COLREGS com- pliance is how autonomous vessels will observe other ves- sels. The COLREGS use lights and sounds to signal the presence, aspect, and status of own ship and others. Bridge watch standers complying with the COLREGS detect