Abstract
In this article, we will look at some of the potentials within autonomous shipping and discuss how we can ensure resilience. The term resilience is widely used, Woods (2015) discusses four different common usages: (1) resilience as rebound from trauma and return to equilibrium; (2) resilience as a synonym for robustness; (3) resilience as the opposite of brittleness, i.e., as graceful extensibility when surprise challenges boundaries; (4) resilience as network architectures that can sustain the ability to adapt to future surprises as conditions evolve (sustained adaptability). Many factors affect the resilience approaches of the autonomous system, including communication and collaboration between technology and humans. This paper will give an understanding of technological limitations, as well as understanding of operational knowledge applied within shipping today that might be addressed to the autonomous sector. Will the knowledge at a Remote Control Centre be sufficient to recover from an unwanted situation? Will the autonomous system be capable to perform without human interactions? A bowtie methodology will be applied to identify and describe preventive and reactive barriers, which can be used to understand the resilience mechanisms. This paper will point to known operational challenges, focus on the interaction between technology and humans, and elaborate on issues which will be important drivers for increased resilience and a successful implementation of autonomous maritime transportation systems.