On March 26, Dalian Maritime University organized an offshore demonstration experiment of the unmanned cluster system based on the vessel Xin Hong Zhuan in relevant sea areas. The integrated “sea-land-air-underwater” intelligent system made its debut during the exercise. It is China’s first cross-domain, three-dimensional collaborative operation system with a real ship as its core platform, marking an important step in China’s intelligent shipping sector from single-equipment R&D toward system integration.

According to Lü Hongguang, Deputy Director of the Science and Technology Department of Dalian Maritime University, all the displayed equipment, including UAV clusters, unmanned surface vessel formations, and underwater operation robots, was independently developed by university research teams and has complete intellectual property rights. The core platform of the system is the new-generation intelligent research and training vessel Xin Hong Zhuan. With an overall length of 69.83 meters, the vessel serves as the “super brain” of the entire unmanned fleet.

The vessel is equipped with more than 15,000 intelligent sensors and has established a ship-shore collaborative control link. It can not only realize remote shore-based control and navigation, but also assign missions and conduct cluster management for multiple types of unmanned equipment operating in the air, on the water surface, and underwater.

In the design of the communication link, the UAV cluster plays a key role. With beyond-line-of-sight communication capability of more than 10 kilometers, UAVs can serve as aerial relay nodes to ensure smooth remote command transmission between the mothership and the shore-based control center. They can also build temporary communication bridges between unmanned surface equipment and the mothership. In addition, UAVs can deliver emergency supplies such as lifebuoys and medical materials accurately to distress locations during rescue operations.

The unmanned surface vessel formation is mainly responsible for escorting the mothership and providing situational awareness around it. These vessels can conduct coordinated patrols around the mothership, monitor surrounding vessel activities and hydrological conditions in real time, and approach dangerous waters such as shoals and reefs that the mothership cannot enter. Underwater operation robots can be used for underwater structural inspection of Xin Hong Zhuan, seabed geological scanning, underwater infrastructure maintenance, and underwater sample recovery.

The system is not simply a combination of various unmanned devices. Instead, through functional division and communication coordination, it achieves multi-level operation capabilities from the air to underwater. It provides a technical verification platform for marine engineering and underwater infrastructure, supports the strategies of building China into a strong maritime and transportation nation, and addresses key challenges in maritime emergency response by offering fast, precise, and three-dimensional delivery methods for search and rescue. As Dalian Maritime University’s mobile offshore laboratory, it is also training interdisciplinary professionals who can operate unmanned clusters and master future navigation technologies under real sea conditions. 

Original Link: https://www.stdaily.com/web/gdxw/2026-03/29/content_494457.html