Samsung Heavy Industries has successfully completed a transpacific test of its AI-based autonomous navigation system, SAS, installed on a 15,000-TEU container ship operated by Taiwan's Evergreen Marine, reports Seoul's BusinessKorea.

The demonstration ran from August 25 to September 6 on a route between Oakland, and Kaohsiung, Taiwan. The SAS system executed 104 optimal guidance operations and 224 automatic ship control actions over 10,000 km.

Developed in 2019, SAS integrates radar, GPS and camera imagery to provide situational awareness and autonomously control engines and rudders for collision avoidance.

The system analysed weather every three hours and adjusted navigation without crew input, resulting in fuel savings and on-time arrival.

Timely arrival is critical in maritime transport, where delays from adverse weather can disrupt supply chains and raise logistics costs. SAS aims to mitigate such risks through predictive analysis.

Samsung Heavy Industries plans further collaboration with Evergreen to enhance fuel efficiency by optimizing both speed and route selection.

Vice president Lee Dong-yeon of Samsung's Shipbuilding and Offshore Research Institute said SAS has progressed from a collision avoidance tool to a system capable of maintaining economical speed and punctuality.

Mr Lee added that SAS offers an eco-friendly solution for fuel efficiency and will benefit the global shipping and logistics sector.