Recently, Guangzhou Port Company Limited received approval from relevant municipal authorities to advance the establishment of the Guangzhou Port Autonomous Driving Demonstration Zone in phases, accelerating the widespread application of autonomous driving technology in the port. Among these developments, Nansha Phase III has become Guangzhou Port’s first “Port Autonomous Driving Demonstration Zone” with a mixed traffic model, marking a significant acceleration in the port’s research and development of the key technology of intelligent horizontal transportation enhancement. This provides more exemplary practical models for the global automated transformation and upgrade of traditional container terminals.
As the main container development port of Guangzhou Port, Nansha Phase III boasts six 150,000-ton-class container berths, a total quay line length exceeding 3.8 kilometers, and is equipped with over 460 pieces of port equipment, possessing the operational capability to handle the world’s largest container vessels in all weather conditions. The Port Autonomous Driving Demonstration Zone (Phase I) is centered on the area from Berth 16 and the barge berth to the H/I yard, encompassing the facilities, equipment, and operational scenarios within this region.
In terms of automated equipment configuration, Nansha Phase III has deployed 12 semi-automatic Ship-to-Shore cranes (STS), 10 automated Rubber-Tired Gantry cranes (RTG), 54 automated Rail-Mounted Gantry cranes (RMG), and 4 autonomous driving container tractors. The core area (H/I yard) has completed its network infrastructure construction, related system upgrades, and supporting engineering projects. Based on the transformation of port yard capabilities and intelligent facilities and equipment, the demonstration zone is fully constructing an automated full-process operational model (mixed horizontal transportation) of “frontline equipment remote-controlled semi-automatic + yard equipment fully automatic + horizontal transportation autonomous driving”.
In terms of system architecture, the demonstration zone has built a central framework with the Terminal Operating System (TOS) as the information hub and the terminal intelligent scheduling system responsible for the real-time scheduling of automated equipment: the remote control and collaborative control of automated equipment are connected through a remote control collaboration platform, and intelligent interaction for autonomous horizontal transportation is achieved by relying on a vehicle-road collaboration platform. Under this framework, the operational level integrates 10 automated RTGs and 4 autonomous container tractors to form an automated yard operation chain. Through the development of standardized system-level interfaces, seamless data interaction between “TOS — Terminal Intelligent Scheduling System — Remote Control Collaboration Platform — Single Equipment” has been achieved, accomplishing efficient operational connectivity of “load upon arrival, depart immediately after loading,” pushing the demonstration zone into the joint debugging phase of the full-process operational chain.
The core objective of the demonstration zone is to achieve a high level of safe mixed operation between autonomous and manual driving in the working environment. This fundamentally relies on a “Strong Cloud, Strong Vehicle” collaborative architecture:
“Strong Vehicle” Foundation: Autonomous driving equipment is equipped with high-performance perception and positioning devices, achieving centimeter-level high-precision positioning, and is配备d with 275 TOPS of computing power, possessing real-time autonomous perception and decision-making capabilities in various mixed traffic environments.
“Strong Cloud” Empowerment: The Autonomous Terminal Equipment Controller (ATEC) aggregates equipment information, performs millisecond-level task scheduling and resource allocation through the remote control collaboration platform, and enables real-time information interaction of “vehicle-vehicle,” “vehicle-road,” and “vehicle-cloud” through the vehicle-road collaboration platform.
The deep collaboration of “Strong Cloud, Strong Vehicle” breaks through the safety and efficiency bottlenecks of traditional “human-machine mixed operation” in terminals, providing critical support for creating a safe and efficient mixed operation model.
The establishment of the demonstration zone is not only an important measure to implement the “Guangzhou Intelligent Connected Vehicle Innovation Development Regulations” but also a key action by Guangzhou Port in responding to the national strategy of building China’s strength in transportation and developing smart transportation. Through technological iteration and model innovation, the demonstration zone focuses on the challenge of high-level safe mixed operation between autonomous and manual driving, creating a practical model for the intelligent transformation of traditional terminals and expanding the application of intelligent connected vehicles in ports. Guangzhou Port is taking concrete actions to help Guangzhou enhance the efficiency and resilience of the national comprehensive transportation system, promote the high-quality development of modern logistics, and contribute solid port strength to China’s transition from a major transportation country to a transportation power.
