VESSEL REVIEW | Lingling 01 – Unmanned survey boat to support dredging and engineering activities

China Communications Construction Company (CCCC) has taken delivery of a new unmanned surface vehicle (USV) to be used in surveys prior to the execution of dredging projects.

Lingling 01 (靈灵01) was built by Changzhou FRP Shipyard as a multi-functional USV with a deep V catamaran design, a pure electric propulsion system, single-beam and multi-beam echosounders, an acoustic Doppler current profiler, and autonomous collision avoidance systems.

The 8.5- by 2.8-metre (28- by 9.2-foot) USV was built to serve as a support craft for Tongjun, CCCC’s recently acquired large-capacity, trailing suction hopper dredger (TSHD).

May be deployed as a daughtercraft operating from a dedicated dredger

The USV’s compact size and light weight will enable it to be deployed more quickly compared to a traditional manned boat

These attributes also allow her to be used in more restrictive waters such as channels and nearshore zones and to be embarked as a daughtercraft aboard the TSHD, thereby enabling her to operate wherever the dredger is deployed.

Real-time mapping for more efficient dredging operations

The onboard sensors can generate an accurate map of the seafloor, showing terrain features and other items of interest in real time. This allows planning for upcoming dredging and engineering projects to be completed in less time, since operators need no longer wait for the survey data to be published.

Lingling 01 was designed by CCCC’s Shanghai Navigation Bureau Dahua Technology division in collaboration with the Institute of Ship and Ocean Engineering Design at Shanghai Jiao Tong University. Its initial operations will be in Nantong in Jiangsu province.