Autonomous ships test range under construction in Italy

Last Updated: 12/02/2025 08:03     Created at: 10/02/2025 07:44

A delegation from the European Space Agency, the Italian Space Agency, the Italian Coast Guard and Fondazione Amaldi visited on the 5th of February 2025 the facilities on the Lake of Nemi, a fresh water volcanic lake in Central Italy, where the I-MASTER project aims to design and develop a National Test Range to test and validate, by using autonomous unmanned large size surface ship models, devices, systems, and procedures for Marine Autonomous Surface Ships (MASS) operations.

To reach fully autonomous ships operations, the Internation Maritime Organization has defined a road map, approved by several countries including Italy, whose target implementation date is 2028.

Italy has 8.000 km of shores but currently it is not possible to run MASS test activities in ports. In this facility at the Lake of Nemi it is possible to perform tests in a safe environment. MASS operations can be executed with models of different vessel types, with a length of about 10 m, since the use of scaled models for MASS testing is approved, recognized and agreed worldwide from the methodological point of view. 

The I-MASTER project is the concrete Italian example of an integrated technological eco-system for the study, development and verification at high TRL of technologies (HW and SW), processes and human skills fundamental for the adoption of autonomous vessels.

The Phase 1 of the project is about to end with a Preliminary Design Review and will lead, if all the conditions are met, to a Phase 2, to perform the detailed design, the implementation and the verification of the Test Range. 

The I-MASTER project (EL3-030) is led by CNR-INM (Italian National Research Council - Institute for Marine Engineering), in a consortium with Spaceexe SRL, YetItMoves Srl and ENG.

The I-MASTER project is conducted under NAVISP Element 3, which is focused on NAVISP participating States’ priorities and aims at supporting their national navigation activities along the whole value chain.