Twenty four months into its four-year journey, AEROSUB has reached an important milestone, completing the first half of the project and establishing the foundations for a new generation of autonomous offshore wind inspection, maintenance and repair solutions.
Funded by the European Union under Horizon Europe, AEROSUB is bringing together leading organisations from across Europe to develop an integrated ecosystem of aerial, surface and underwater robotic systems, supported by artificial intelligence and digital twin technologies. The project aims to transform how offshore wind assets are inspected and maintained, helping make operations safer, more efficient and more sustainable.
Building the foundations for autonomous offshore operations
Since its launch, the consortium has made significant progress across the project’s technical, operational and strategic activities. Key milestones and deliverables planned for the reporting period have been successfully completed, providing a solid basis for the next phases of technology integration and validation.
One of the major achievements of the project has been the definition of six demonstration scenarios that will guide the validation of AEROSUB technologies in representative offshore wind environments. Developed in close collaboration with industry stakeholders, these scenarios ensure that the solutions being developed address real operational challenges faced by the sector.
At the same time, project partners have advanced the development of the core technologies that will power the AEROSUB ecosystem, including autonomous robotic platforms, AI-enabled inspection capabilities, mission planning tools and digital twin functionalities. Together, these innovations are designed to support coordinated operations between multiple robotic assets, enabling a more intelligent and autonomous approach to offshore wind maintenance.
A human-centred approach to innovation
AEROSUB has continued to place people at the centre of technology development. Considerations related to safety, human-robot interaction and user acceptance have been embedded into system requirements and design activities.
By integrating these aspects from the outset, the project is helping to ensure that future autonomous systems can support offshore personnel effectively, while contributing to the long-term goal of reducing human exposure to hazardous offshore environments and improving working conditions across the sector.
Supporting the green transition
By developing the foundations for unmanned and energy-efficient inspection, maintenance and repair operations, AEROSUB is paving the way for future reductions in fuel consumption, greenhouse gas emissions and the environmental footprint associated with offshore wind operations and maintenance activities.
While the quantitative environmental benefits will be demonstrated during the project’s later stages, sustainability considerations have already been integrated into key technical and operational design decisions.
Looking ahead
As AEROSUB enters the second half of the project, activities will increasingly focus on technology integration, validation and demonstration. The consortium will continue bringing together its robotic platforms, AI capabilities and digital twin ecosystem in progressively more realistic operational scenarios, moving closer to demonstrating a fully integrated solution for autonomous offshore wind inspection and maintenance.
With strong foundations now in place, AEROSUB is well positioned to take the next steps towards delivering innovative technologies that can support the future of Europe’s offshore wind sector.
