Game Change: A Critical Review of Applicable Collision Avoidance Rules between Traditional and Autonomous Ships

Since the rise of intelligent control and multi-sensor integration technology, the development of autonomous ships has been significantly growing over the last decade. This advancement has painted a picture of extreme change with a radical alteration of human factors and new operating models. Inherent with the development of such ships, some concerns regarding their safe operation and integration into the maritime regulatory framework arose. Although the introduction of autonomous vessels is not an impending factor, it is the future, and one day will come into application. The primary concern inherent in the development of autonomous ships is compliance with the current International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea (COLREGS) 1972. This paper uses an interdisciplinary approach to examine autonomous vessel seaborne interactions. The results show that we should actively support the modernization of the maritime industry and integrate it with other autonomous industries in the world.