From Guiding Ships with Lighthouse Beams to Navigating Advanced Mobility with High-Precision Satellite Location Information

 

MOF announcing the Innovation Strategy for Ocean Navigation Information Systems jointly with related ministries

 

Aiming to expand the size of the marine information industry to KRW 6 trillion by 2029 through public services such as high-precision location information and maritime big data

 

 The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries (MOF; Minister Kang Do-hyung) disclosed that it had prepared the Innovation Strategy for Ocean Navigation Information Systems jointly with the relevant ministries to support advanced mobility as well as the industrialization of maritime information, and announced it at the meeting of ministers related to current affairs on Thursday, April 24.

 

 Navigation information facilities such as lighthouses and marine buoys installed to support the safe navigation of ships have been transmitting navigation information in analog formats such as lights and shapes. As the navigation equipment of ships advances, the demand for digitalized navigation information has increased; in particular, the need for high-precision location information is increasing with the advent of advanced mobility such as autonomous ships, self-driving cars, and drones.

 

 Moreover, the importance of maritime big data for marine safety, climate change response, etc., is increasing, leading to the need to build a foundation for marine data collection.

 

 Accordingly, MOF has established the Innovation Strategy for Ocean Navigation Information Systems, which aims to provide accurate location information to support the growth of the advanced mobility industry and industrialization of maritime information through the information collected and provided by marine infrastructure such as approximately 1,800 light buoys installed at sea.

 

 This strategy report presents three major implementation strategies and nine policy tasks with the vision “To realize a convenient, safe sea with hyper-connected navigation information.” The strategy aims to expand the scope of utilization of navigation information represented by location information from ships to advanced land mobility and increase the number of users of the navigation information system from about 70,000 at present to approximately 1.1 million by 2029. Its goal is to increase the industry's market size by utilizing marine information from the current KRW 21 trillion to KRW 27 trillion, which will be achieved by 2029 by implementing the established strategy without a hitch.

 

 To achieve the goal, MOF will pursue the following three strategies:

 

 Strategy 1. Commercializing and Advancing the Location Information System

 

 First, the high-precision location information service—whose development was completed in 2024—will correct the GPS location information error from the existing 10 meters to 5 centimeters and provide it through broadcasting and mobile communication networks for use in advanced mobility services** such as smart ports*, autonomous ships, land logistics transport, and agricultural drones.

 

 

 * Confirming the location of logistics and equipment during unloading and transport using remote cranes, autonomous cargo transport equipment, etc.

 

 

 ** Used for autonomous vehicles to find optimal movement paths, avoid obstacles, and check the real-time location

 

 Moreover, to ensure that Korean citizens' fishing activities are not restricted by the ongoing GPS signal interference in the West Sea border waters, MOF will provide terrestrial positioning information system receivers to ships sailing in the West Sea border waters as a priority. In addition, technology for reducing the positioning error of terrestrial navigation systems from the current minimum of 20 meters to 10 meters will be developed.

 

 MOF also plans to establish a dedicated research center and secure professional manpower for next-generation location information service systems and strengthen collaboration with maritime observation agencies such as the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) and Ministry of Environment (MOE) to enhance information provision and utilization.

 

 Strategy 2. Improving the Functions and Services of Maritime Navigation Information Facilities

 

 The strategy will diversify and enhance the functions of navigation information facilities. By completing the development of smart navigational aids (2021–2025), maritime navigation facilities such as marine buoys can collect and generate diverse kinds of marine information such as marine weather, environment, and ecological information beyond the navigational guidance function. Additionally, specialized navigation aids—including mobile aids to mark capsized or adrift vessels and virtual aids to navigation to designate emergency hazard zones—will be introduced to streamline accident response and prevent secondary incidents.

 

 The dedicated maritime IoT wireless network will be developed and deployed nationwide to transmit the collected maritime data efficiently and cost-effectively. An Information Service Center will also be established to process the collected navigational data and provide it to the public. Leveraging this infrastructure, the strategy will process and regenerate marine big data to support safe vessel navigation and enable integrated applications for fisheries, climate change research, recreational activities, and more.

 

 Strategy 3. Strengthening Support for the Navigation Information Industry and Facility Management

 

 The strategy will support the export of excellent navigation information technology and equipment. It will pursue the international standardization of high-precision location information services by 2028, establish an Export Support Council (tentatively named) jointly participated in by the industry, academe, and research institutes to identify collaborative projects, continue to drive regulatory improvements, and support the global expansion of Korean businesses.

 

 International cooperation will be strengthened as well. A new director-level secondment position will be created to promote the international standardization of Korean technologies within the International Organization for Marine Aids to Navigation (IALA), which transitioned to an intergovernmental organization last year. In the medium to long term, Korea plans to host an International Cooperation Center (tentatively named) under IALA that will collect and share standardized global navigational and maritime information observation information, positioning Korea as a hub for international maritime information exchange.

 

 “The newly announced Innovation Strategy for Ocean Navigation Information Systems outlines our vision to transform navigation facilities into core infrastructure for the digital era by delivering high-precision positioning and diverse kinds of maritime data. We will do our best to ensure safer seas for our citizens and empower them to experience a technologically advanced daily life,” Minister of Oceans and Fisheries Kang Do-hyung said.