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That's where the robot defense system comes in. Lack of crew will greatly simplify the implementation as it can be trained to fire on all humans without concer

That's where the robot defense system comes in. Lack of crew will greatly simplify the implementation as it can be trained to fire on all humans without concern for friendly fire.

dalke 13y ago
Would it exclaim "Got the humanoid, got the intruder!" when that happens? :) Current maritime law doesn't allow for robot defense systems with lethal force. Consider too what happens if the Coast Guard wants to interdict but the distant operators "accidentally" forget to disable the defense system.
- GVIrish 13y ago
  Memories of ED-209 malfunctions abound. I'd hate to be the guy that has to do maintainenance on a drone ship filled with kill bots.
- Houshalter 13y ago
  It wouldn't necessarily be autonomous but remote controlled. Or have a single manned boat with security forces on it guarding dozens of unmanned ships in a fleet.
  - Perdition 13y ago
    So the pirates jam the radio frequencies for the control signal. Convoys are incredibly inefficient which is why they are only used in war time (it takes days to form a convoy due to loading times). And no security boat can protect hundreds of miles of ocean, which is why piracy is still alive today.
    - phazmatis 13y ago
      So the boat will submerge when it senses trouble. Then we'll get submarine pirates but... The barrier to entry would have expanded sufficiently.
      - dalke 13y ago
        It's economically preposterous to have submersible cargo bulk carriers. The maximum gross mass for a TEU is 24,000 kg. The volume is 38.5 cubic meters => density of 623 kg/cubic meter. The density of sea water is about 1020 kg/cubic meter. Thus, to be neutrally buoyant, each TEU needs a countermass of at least 397 kg/cubic meter, or 15 tons. A 5,000 TEU would have to lug around some 76,000 tonnes in the best of cases. This could be handled with water, but that implies very large tanks (about equal to the amount of cargo), which greatly reduces the amount of cargo space available. This is why merchant subs are only really appropriate for dense cargoes (like metals) or for very expensive cargoes (like chemical dyes, medical drugs, and mail; or cocaine for narco-submarines). Even then, it's only economically justifiable in order to run a blockade or bypass an ice sheet.
        dalke 13y ago
        > This could be handled with water D'oh! Of course it can't.
- lostsock 13y ago
  Who said it had to be lethal? You would certainly be able to build a human unfriendly environment if you didn't have to differentiate between crew and pirates. It could be loud noises, bright lights, electrifying things, pepper spray mists, tear gas etc etc.
  - dalke 13y ago
    Umm, the previous poster? "trained to fire on all humans without concern for friendly fire" sounds lethal to me.
fnordfnordfnord 13y ago
Good luck hiring someone to service that thing.
deleted 13y ago
[deleted]

That's where the robot defense system comes in. Lack of crew will greatly simplify the implementation as it can be trained to fire on all humans without concern for friendly fire.

dalke 13y ago

Would it exclaim "Got the humanoid, got the intruder!" when that happens? :) Current maritime law doesn't allow for robot defense systems with lethal force. Consider too what happens if the Coast Guard wants to interdict but the distant operators "accidentally" forget to disable the defense system.

GVIrish 13y ago
Memories of ED-209 malfunctions abound. I'd hate to be the guy that has to do maintainenance on a drone ship filled with kill bots.
Houshalter 13y ago
It wouldn't necessarily be autonomous but remote controlled. Or have a single manned boat with security forces on it guarding dozens of unmanned ships in a fleet.
- Perdition 13y ago
  So the pirates jam the radio frequencies for the control signal. Convoys are incredibly inefficient which is why they are only used in war time (it takes days to form a convoy due to loading times). And no security boat can protect hundreds of miles of ocean, which is why piracy is still alive today.
  - phazmatis 13y ago
    So the boat will submerge when it senses trouble. Then we'll get submarine pirates but... The barrier to entry would have expanded sufficiently.
    - dalke 13y ago
      It's economically preposterous to have submersible cargo bulk carriers. The maximum gross mass for a TEU is 24,000 kg. The volume is 38.5 cubic meters => density of 623 kg/cubic meter. The density of sea water is about 1020 kg/cubic meter. Thus, to be neutrally buoyant, each TEU needs a countermass of at least 397 kg/cubic meter, or 15 tons. A 5,000 TEU would have to lug around some 76,000 tonnes in the best of cases. This could be handled with water, but that implies very large tanks (about equal to the amount of cargo), which greatly reduces the amount of cargo space available. This is why merchant subs are only really appropriate for dense cargoes (like metals) or for very expensive cargoes (like chemical dyes, medical drugs, and mail; or cocaine for narco-submarines). Even then, it's only economically justifiable in order to run a blockade or bypass an ice sheet.
      - dalke 13y ago
        > This could be handled with water D'oh! Of course it can't.
lostsock 13y ago
Who said it had to be lethal? You would certainly be able to build a human unfriendly environment if you didn't have to differentiate between crew and pirates. It could be loud noises, bright lights, electrifying things, pepper spray mists, tear gas etc etc.
- dalke 13y ago
  Umm, the previous poster? "trained to fire on all humans without concern for friendly fire" sounds lethal to me.

fnordfnordfnord 13y ago

Good luck hiring someone to service that thing.

deleted 13y ago

[deleted]