MARLIN

MARLIN is an innovative maritime surveillance project focused on enhancing the detection, identification, and tracking of maritime and airborne threats through the integration of advanced observation technologies and artificial intelligence. The project addresses a critical challenge faced by modern maritime security stakeholders: the availability of large volumes of sensor data without sufficiently integrated and autonomous systems to rapidly identify abnormal or threatening activities. [MARLIN | B…ue Cluster]

Objective

The primary objective of MARLIN is to improve maritime domain awareness and strengthen the protection of ports, coastal regions, and critical maritime infrastructure. By combining advanced sensing capabilities with AI-driven analytics, MARLIN enables faster and more reliable threat detection while supporting European technological autonomy in the security and defence domain. [MARLIN | B…ue Cluster]

Technical Approach

MARLIN builds upon an existing FLIR Pan-Tilt-Zoom (PTZ) observation platform, extending its capabilities with a range of intelligent functionalities, including:

• Thermal and visual sensing integration
• Autonomous camera control and target tracking
• AI-based anomaly detection
• Sensor fusion for improved situational awareness
• Automated identification and classification of potential threats
• Long-range monitoring of maritime and airborne targets

Through the fusion of multiple sensor streams and advanced AI algorithms, the system is designed to detect, classify, and continuously track suspicious objects or behaviours in complex maritime environments. [MARLIN | B…ue Cluster]

Demonstration Activities

The project includes realistic operational demonstrations involving various maritime security scenarios. During these trials, the MARLIN system is evaluated on its ability to:

• Detect threats at long distances
• Classify potential targets
• Maintain autonomous tracking
• Support operators with timely and actionable intelligence

These demonstrations validate the effectiveness of AI-enhanced surveillance technologies in operational maritime environments. [MARLIN | B…ue Cluster]

RMA’s Contribution

The Royal Military Academy (RMA) contributes its expertise in robotics, artificial intelligence, autonomous systems, sensor processing, and defence-related research. Through its involvement in MARLIN, RMA supports the development and evaluation of advanced algorithms that improve the autonomous detection, classification, and monitoring of maritime threats, contributing to next-generation surveillance capabilities for security and defence applications.

Consortium

MARLIN is a collaborative project involving:

• Teledyne FLIR
• APIXA
• Royal Military Academy (RMA)

The project is supported within the framework of a Blue Bastion initiative with support from RHID. [MARLIN | B…ue Cluster]

Expected Impact

MARLIN contributes to safer maritime operations by enabling more efficient surveillance of coastal zones, ports, and critical infrastructure. The project’s AI-enabled approach reduces operator workload, improves detection performance, and strengthens European capabilities in maritime security and defence technologies.