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PORT SECURITY ager of Sofar Ocean, points out: “De- tection only matters if it’s fast enough to act on. Real-time processing at the sen- sor closes the gap between identifying a threat and responding to it.”

One of the most pressing challenges is having a clear, real-time understand- ing of what’s happening in and around a port, says Rob Lehman, Co-Founder and Chief Commercial Of? cer at Sa- ronic. Today, many ports still rely on legacy approaches — manpower-inten- sive patrols on costly manned platforms — which deliver only episodic coverage and leave persistent blind spots that ad- versaries can exploit, he says. “To coun- ter these threats, we’re seeing a shift in priorities toward solutions that are scal- able, autonomous and data-driven, built

Spotter Scout on distributed, attritable systems capable is an uncrewed, solar- of operating 24/7 with minimal human powered vehicle built oversight.” Corsair, Saronic’s 24-foot by Online Oceans.

ASV, supports a wide range of applica- tions including maritime domain aware- ness, port, harbor, and offshore facility

Sofar Ocean security monitoring, logistics shuttle op- erations and environmental monitoring.

Philip Lewis, Director of Research at Intelatus, has undertaken a compre- hensive review of AUV and ASV tech- nology. “Just think of them as a blank canvas,” he says. A ? exible variety of payloads means they can undertake a range of tasks including detecting un- wanted intruders, people traf? cking and illegal migration. They are also being used for ? re? ghting, bathymetry, envi- ronmental surveys and trash and algal bloom removal.

USVs offer a low-cost immediate force multiplier for port security, he says. “They’re generally quick to take from concept to production, and new solutions are coming out in under a year.

They’re unmanned, so they are a lot less complex to build than manned plat- forms. Take-up has been fastest in big

European ports, such as Rotterdam and

Hamburg, and in Asian ports such as

Singapore, but the U.S. is increasingly focused on the force multiplier effects.”

U.S. government agencies have tested www.marinelink.com 29

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