The Port of Antwerp-Bruges has built an extensive digital radar and camera network for enhanced traffic management.
This technology scans the whole Antwerp port area and is scheduled to serve as the foundation for secure and efficient maritime traffic.
Antwerp’s port region is more than 120 square kilometres large, with 11,000 hectares of canals and quays.
The Port of Antwerp-Bruges has enlarged and digitised its camera and radar infrastructure in order to continually monitor the whole region as well as all maritime movements.
The 460 cameras and 22 radars are directly connected to the Antwerp Coordination Centre and provide operational services such as Vessel Traffic Services (VTS) and the Harbour Master’s Office with a comprehensive view of the port.
This enables the port to closely monitor shipping and manage waterways and moorings in accordance with the highest International Association of Lighthouse Authorities (IALA) standards.
The images are then viewed and analysed by colleagues with police powers and can also be shared with security services and other authorities, according to the Port of Antwerp-Bruges.
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As the whole network has been digitised, it is also reportedly ready to be linked to APICA (Advanced Port Information and Control Assistant), the port’s Digital Twin.
The digital duplicate of the port area delivers a scan every second to produce a real-time image of what is occurring at the port based on hundreds of bits of data from a network of cameras, sensors, and drones.
Operational since 2022, APICA supports port workers to quickly gain visibility into the situation on the ground, and, therefore, to carry out their work more safely and efficiently.
READ: APICA: The Digital Twin Solution Transforming the Port of Antwerp-Bruges
The smart cameras are further equipped with specially designed artificial intelligence (AI) that allows them to recognise ships.
This real-time data, when combined with comprehensive radar data, intends to boost situational awareness in the future in order to move towards predictive and guiding behaviour.
In March of this year, Port of Antwerp-Bruges and its partners Dronematrix, Skeydrone, and Proximus were given the green light to launch their drone in a box network D-Hive.
Two months later, the Port of Antwerp-Bruges launched the ‘D-Hive drone-in-a-box’ network to enhance security in the port area.
