OpenBridge open-source code officially released with attendance of Norwegian Crown Prince
In a move set to transform the global maritime sector, the Norwegian Royal HRH Crown Prince Haakon and Prince Sverre Magnus officially launched a comprehensive open-source code library for OpenBridge design system. This design system is engineered to create safer and more efficient workplaces across the international fleet by standardizing how humans interact with maritime technology. The royal launch marks the transition of OpenBridge from a design guideline to an open-source ready-to-use code library. The project has now released 200 fully coded web components on GitHub.
Developed at the Oslo School of Architecture and Design (AHO), the system addresses one of the most persistent challenges in modern shipping: the dangerous fragmentation of digital interfaces across the industry. Modern maritime workplaces are currently equipped with a multitude of systems from various vendors, each with unique layouts, icons, and logic. This lack of consistency increases the risk of human error in critical situations and hinders the effective use of new technologies. OpenBridge solves this by providing a universal framework that supports a vast range of maritime technologies.
🤝 Open Bridge is backed by over 40 international partners across industry and academia, including Kongsberg, Maritime Robotics, Norwegian Electric System, SEAM, Argonics, Beijer Electronic, Jotron Skipper, Lilaas, Tritek Power & Automation, Mahi, North Invent and others.
These “building blocks” are available for free to developers and designers worldwide, dramatically reducing the cost and time required to develop safety-critical maritime software. The impact of the system is already visible worldwide. Even prior to the code launch, OpenBridge design files were downloaded over 7,000 times, with the highest activity recorded in major maritime nations including Norway, Japan, South Korea, the Netherlands, and Germany.
🎤 “The goal is to establish a global standard for user-centered maritime design,” says Kjetil Nordby, Professor and leader of the Ocean Industries Concept Lab. “By offering ready-made code, we are making it significantly cheaper and easier for any vendor to implement high-quality, safety-standardized designs. We hope this will accelerate the rollout of safer workstations across the entire world fleet.”
🎤 The Kongsberg Group stands out as one of the most important partners and contributors to the open innovation initiative, OpenBridge. Speaking to the assembly prior to the launch, Geir Håøy, CEO of Kongsberg Group, emphasized the industry-wide significance of the project: “Open design and open innovation are absolutely essential for the industry as a whole to develop the best and safest solutions more rapidly. This is standardization that benefits everyone. From those developing new innovations to maritime users worldwide.”
🎤 Kongsberg Maritime President Lisa Edvardsen Haugan says: “The future is all about technological innovation and collaboration. In this regard, OpenBridge plays a pivotal role as the leading open design system for advanced maritime workstations,” says Haugan.
📃📷 Source: Ocean Industries Concept Lab