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Busan Launches Development of AI-Based Black Box for Small Vessels to Enhance Maritime Safety

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Busan Metropolitan City (Mayor Park Heong-joon) announced that it held a project briefing session at 10:30 AM yesterday (July 24) in the 22nd-floor conference room of City Hall to ensure the smooth implementation of the “Development of an Integrated Black Box for Preventing Onboard Accidents on AI-Based Small Vessels and Powered Leisure Watercraft.”

The session was attended by representatives from the City, the lead organization One Data Technology Co., Ltd., SAN Engineering Co., Ltd., and the Korea Research Institute of Ships & Ocean Engineering (KRISO). It was held to facilitate information sharing between participating companies and relevant institutions.

This project is part of a technology development initiative aimed at resolving region-specific disaster safety issues in Busan. With support from the Ministry of the Interior and Safety and the Korea Institute for Advancement of Technology, the development and field testing of the integrated black box system will be carried out over a 33-month period.

The project was selected as a region-specific initiative by the City in November last year (2024), followed by public calls for proposals and evaluations in the first half of this year (2025), culminating in a project agreement in June.

Over the three-year period (2025–2027), KRW 2.19 billion will be invested (KRW 1.46 billion from national funds, KRW 365 million from municipal funds, and KRW 365 million from private contributions). The key tasks include:
▲ Development of technology to detect abnormal behavior and hazardous situations among passengers
▲ Development of a prototype integrated black box and establishment of a safety management service platform
▲ Construction of a testbed and validation/improvement of the safety management service through demonstrations

The AI-based integrated black box will be the first of its kind in South Korea. It will utilize sensor and video data analysis via artificial intelligence to improve safety management and accident prevention for small vessels such as fishing boats and leisure yachts.

Key component technologies will include abnormal behavior and hazard detection for passengers, hazard alert systems, accident data storage, and the establishment of a cloud-based remote monitoring system. Upon completion of development, technical validation will be conducted through real-world testing on fishing boats and yachts.

The project will be led by three organizations:

• ●One Data Technology Co., Ltd., which will apply its expertise in AI and cloud-based application services to develop edge technologies for the integrated AI black box;

• ●SAN Engineering Co., Ltd., a leading company in marine smart technologies, which will be responsible for the product development of the integrated black box;

• ●The Korea Research Institute of Ships & Ocean Engineering (KRISO), a professional institute in marine equipment demonstration and testing, which will use its own vessels and monitoring systems to collect real-world data and support product testing and validation.

Park Geun-rok, Director General of the Oceans and Fisheries Bureau of Busan Metropolitan City, stated, “We hope that the participating organizations, including One Data Technology Co., Ltd., which possess advanced technological capabilities, will do their utmost in developing an AI-based black box that will play a critical role in minimizing casualties and identifying causes in the event of maritime accidents.”

He added, “Through this project, we aim to strengthen domestic technological competitiveness, enhance maritime and fisheries safety within the region, and lead the creation of a new maritime safety market.”