Patrick Potgraven

Patrick Potgraven heads the smart shipping program of the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management. The program is preparing the government for the introduction of smart ships for sea as well as inland water. This preparation concerns policy and lawmaking, but also adaptions of infrastructure and the services provided by the authorities.

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Presentation

Can ships talk?

The intentions of ships in the area are important for navigating a ship. Studies show that the automatic exchange of sailing intentions can improve safety and efficiency on waterways. The rapid uptake of track pilots on western European waterways is making sailing lines available digitally. The next step is to share these intentions with other ships in the area. This can help, for example, collision warning systems to predict collisions with great accuracy. In the second half of 2025, a large experiment will be carried out where intentions are shared, even between systems delivered by different suppliers.