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An image of Hanwha Systems’ cockpit-style Integrated Bridge System (IBS). / Hanwha Systems

Hanwha Systems will develop a next-generation bridge system that will enable as few as two operators to integrate the major functions of a large combat ship, including navigation, combat and propulsion.

Hanwha Systems said on Nov. 2 that it had won a contract for the development project titled “Smart Bridge Operation Technology Applying a Cockpit System,” which is overseen by the Korea Research Institute for Defense Technology Planning and Advancement (KRIT).

The project will run through 2030, and Hanwha Systems will be responsible for everything from manufacturing the hardware for the cockpit-style IBS to developing the integrated operation software.

The cockpit-style IBS is a system that integrates a ship’s key operational functions into a single space, much like an aircraft cockpit. It is designed so that as few as two operators can perform in an integrated manner the functions of navigation, combat, propulsion and control, which were previously divided among multiple crew members across the bridge, combat information center and engine control room.

To this end, four core technologies developed in-house by Hanwha Systems will be applied: the Integrated Bridge System (IBS), Combat Management System (CMS), Engineering Control System (ECS) and Unmanned System (UMS).

The system will also be equipped with AI-based collision-avoidance technology. This technology supports a ship in analyzing the surrounding maritime situation, calculating collision risk and selecting an appropriate avoidance route. Hanwha Systems also plans to digitalize existing analog control panels to improve operational efficiency.

Through this project, Hanwha Systems plans to expand the scope of localization of core ship systems. Having already localized the combat management system, the “brain” of a naval vessel, and the engineering control system, its “heart,” the company now aims to secure the next-generation bridge system that connects the two.

Yoo Moon-ki, head of Hanwha Systems’ Naval Business Division, said, “With the award of the cockpit-style IBS project, we have now secured all the core technologies for ship automation and unmanned operation.” He added, “We will help address the Navy’s pressing challenges of shrinking manpower resources and crew shortages, and lead the era of future unmanned naval vessels.”

                                                                                                                Kim Yu-ra