“Hornet” to defend the Polish Baltic Sea. Gdańsk University of Technology’s Autonomous and Unmanned Boat | Gdańsk University of Technology

The work on the project began in 2020, as part of the European Commission-supervised Horizon 2020 program supporting research and innovation. Led by Prof. Łukasz Kulas, a team of Gdańsk Tech scientists created a self-developed structure for the entire system, including both the specialized apparatus and software. At present, the “Hornet” (PL: “Szerszeń”) boat is almost a final product, arousing a wide range of interest from potential partners in the commercialization of the project. After all, the industry's needs for monitoring critical installations are immense today, especially in the light of Poland's energy security.

‘At the heart of the “Hornet” is a self-developed system for super-fast processing of information from advanced equipment and sensors, which accurately detects objects on the water surface, as well as whatever is below it,’ explains Łukasz Kulas, DSc. of Engineering, professor at Gdańsk Tech from the Department of Microwave and Antenna Engineering at the Faculty of Electronics, Telecommunications and Informatics, as well as a coordinator of the Digital Technologies Center. ‘All data is collected, analyzed and processed in the vessel's onboard computer, enabling the system to make real-time decisions. If an unexpected obstacle is encountered on the way, the decision-making systems will safely pass it by,’ adds the leading author of the project.

Presenting the “Hornet” on Wyspa Sobieszewska (Sobieszewska Island)

On Wednesday, October 23, 2024, just before the scientists finish this year's tests of the “Hornet” and the boat returns to the hangar, a presentation of the vessel was held at the Vistula River Marina, owned by the City of Gdańsk.

‘Our university plays a key role in Poland's green transformation, of which one of the most important aspects is the construction of offshore wind farms on the Polish Baltic Sea waters,’ said Prof. Krzysztof Wilde, Rector of Gdańsk Tech. ‘We cooperate with the entities responsible for their construction, share our knowledge, but also ready-made solutions, such as the “Hornet” presented today, for the protection of offshore systems,’ he explained further.

The Rector of Gdańsk Tech continued by mentioning that the University is a partner in the NATO's DIANA project and the first so-called “Living Lab” in Poland will be established on Gdańsk Tech campus. The “Living Lab” is a place to exhibit the latest technologies and inventions of the defense sector, developed by scientists and the military of NATO member states.

‘One of the solutions presented in the program will be the autonomous boat “Hornet”,’ added Prof. Krzysztof Wilde, Rector of Gdańsk Tech.

The ”Hornet”: Applications, Cost and Future of the Project

What exactly is inside the seven-meter-long boat? ‘There is the aforementioned super-fast data processing system, containing self-developed algorithms that allow for object identification and autonomous operation, among other things’ lists Prof. Kulas. ‘We have also installed structured cabling and a number of sensors for object detection, including cameras, radars and lidars, known, for example, from the most modern cars.’

During the development of the Hornet, the scientists have established cooperation with a number of Polish and foreign entities interested in both the application of this type of boat in their current operations, and the production of this type of vessel.

‘Our solution is highly versatile, reliable and scalable, while the costs of production and maintenance are much lower than those found in foreign competitors' products,’ explains Prof. Kulas.

The cost of the boat's construction, equipping it with specialized apparatus, and integrating the systems, backed by hundreds of hours of testing, cost approximately one million euros. At the same time, the “Hornet” is a prototype vessel, and scientists highlight that another one would already cost only approximately 150-200 thousand euros, which further increases the competitiveness of this solution on the market. For reference, similar vessels on foreign markets, and there are only a few of them, cost from 1.5 to 2 million euros, which is ten times more.

Furthermore, the safety of the entire system is overseen by a unique wireless communication system, which is used to ensure communication with multiple unmanned vessels simultaneously. The system is based on innovative smart antennas, an original product of Gdańsk University of Technology.

‘They increase the resistance of wireless communications to radio jamming devices, and when radio interference is encountered, they are able to quickly amplify the desired signals and suppress the interference,’ adds Prof. Kulas.

The solutions developed by Gdańsk Tech scientists in this area are of great interest to manufacturers of unmanned vessels, as they are the only Polish solution and one of only ten in the world currently being developed under the NATO DIANA program, which aims to implement the most promising technologies in the Alliance's civilian and defense sectors.