Keeping track of the number of passengers driving or boarding a ferry can be challenging when departures and arrivals need to be fast and efficient. There are also often limitations on what equipment can be set up on the quayside. The shipping company Norled and the technology company Counting Hero have therefore worked closely on a pilot project for automatic passenger counting on board the ferry MF “Nesvik”.
-“We’re ready to introduce fully automated passenger counting, which will ensure that we have the correct number of people on board at all times. The new system will provide good and consistent quality of counts, and employees will be able to concentrate on other tasks when embarking and disembarking,” explains Norled project manager Einar Hougen.
The company Counting Hero has developed the solution using special cameras placed at each end of the ferry. The films from onboard driving are automatically analyzed in real time when the ferry is boarding and disembarking. This is done on an on-board computer and the camera images are immediately deleted to ensure privacy. Everything is done using artificial intelligence and cameras designed for the purpose. Using machine learning, the system is constantly learning how to count people.
-Automatic passenger counting is an excellent tool for allowing cars to drive unhindered on board the ferry. With our solution, the ferry crew can be sure of the passenger count when cars and pedestrians move on board the ferry. It’s very challenging for the crew to try to look into each car and count manually. Our solution has been developed to ensure the safety of passengers and simplify the crew’s job,” says Jone S. Rasmussen, CEO of Counting Hero.
Testing of the system shows good results and Norled plans to install the solution on MF “Hydra” after the system has been put into full operation on MF “Nesvik”.
