Autonomous robots and innovative technologies from GUT at the sea port and airport | Gdańsk University of Technology

The InSecTT* project (Intelligent Secure Trustable Things), whose total value is approximately EUR 44 million, is an international research initiative based on the Horizon2020 program. It consists of the most important companies and scientific institutions from all over Europe that develop secure IoT systems (the so-called Internet of Things), supported by solutions in the field of artificial intelligence.

GUT is one of the leaders in the implementation area in this project, as well as a supplier of components and original technological solutions. Early in July, GUT scientists from the Department of Microwave and Antenna Engineering (Faculty of Electronics, Telecommunications and Informatics of GUT) and the faculty authorities concluded a cooperation agreement in this project with the Maritime Office in Gdynia. Now the following partners have joined the group: Lech Wałęsa Airport and the Gdańsk Sea Port, with which agreements were signed on 12 and 13 August 2020.

Security and response time are of key importance

At the Gdańsk airport, as at any airport in the world, unusual and unexpected situations often occur, and the response to them is crucial for the proper functioning of the airport. Tt is in this field that the Gdańsk airport will be supported by technologies and scientists from GUT.

- Tne of the solutions we propose are small, autonomous inspection robots equipped with appropriate sensors, lidars, radars, vision cameras and infrared cameras, and which will be able to provide a lot of additional information to the airport staff - says Mateusz Rzymowski, employee of the Department of Microwave and Antenna Engineering at the Faculty of Electronics, Telecommunications and Informatics of GUT, responsible for coordinating technical tasks in the project. - Thanks to this, the people responsible for maintaining security at the airport will be able to quickly learn about any anomalies being detected, such as a damaged fence or an intrusion into the airport area of an unauthorised person.

- By establishing cooperation and implementing new solutions prepared by Gdańsk University of Technology, we will strengthen the control of the airport territory and improve the operation of its infrastructure elements - adds Tomasz Kloskowski, president of the Gdańsk Lech Wałęsa Airport. - Facilitated access to new technologies will be important for the long-term and sustainable development of the airport.

Towards efficiency improvement

In turn, the Sea Port in Gdańsk is one of the key ports in the Baltic Sea and in August 2020 it was also promoted to the top twenty European ports. The solutions proposed by Gdańsk University of Technology are in line with the current trends in building advantages in port areas through the use of digital technologies.

- Te systems of energy-saving sensors and tags for IoT solutions developed by us can be installed in various places of the port infrastructure. They will provide huge amount of data that will be analyzed, among others with the use of artificial intelligence algorithms - says Łukasz Szczygielski, employee of the Department of Microwave and Antenna Engineering (FETI, GUT) and coordinator of implementation works at the Gdańsk port as part of the InSecTT project. - Additional use of the reconfigurable antennas developed by our team will allow for determining the position of sensors and markers without the use of the GPS system, which will reduce the costs of future implementations and at the same time protect the system against potential cyber-attacks - he adds.

The authorities of the Gdańsk port are happy about the cooperation with GUT and the technology transfer and the competences of GUT scientists.

- By analyzing the data collected by the devices of Gdańsk University of Technology and the multi-level analytical reports built by GUT scientists on their basis, we will be able to better manage our assets - says Sławomir Michalewski, vice president of the management board of the Sea Port of Gdansk. - Optimization of the use and the method of operation of machines and devices involved in cargo handling ultimately translates into increasing the attractiveness and market competitiveness of entities that carry out this type of operations. Safety aspects, insurance costs or the benefits of anticipating and preventing equipment failures shouldn’t be underestimated.

In the first half of July, GUT scientists signed a similar cooperation agreement under the InSecTT project with the Maritime Office in Gdynia.