DEEPLOCK and Hong Kong PolyU Tackle the “Last Technical Frontier” of Smart Ports
Hong Kong, June 2026 — DEEPLOCK and The Hong Kong Polytechnic University have entered a strategic collaboration and launched a joint research project on optimizing the digital end-to-end container terminal workflow after the introduction of automated twistlock stations. The partnership will focus on internal truck routing and yard-rule redesign, bringing together academic research and engineering practice to support fully autonomous port operations.
Industry context: a station that reshapes the system
As 5G communications and artificial intelligence spread across port operations, automated transport equipment such as AGVs and IGVs has reached scaled deployment in multiple scenarios, while quay and yard crane automation continues to advance. Container twistlock handling, however, has long remained manual — the final bottleneck in the unmanned terminal system.
An automated twistlock station is not a simple replacement within an existing process. It inserts a new operational node into the traditional quay-crane–internal-truck–yard chain, changing vehicle routes, dispatch logic, cycle times and container stacking rules. Scientifically evaluating and optimizing those changes across the complete digital workflow is now a central question for smart port development.
Engineering practice meets academic research
Drawing on its proprietary intelligent twistlock equipment, DEEPLOCK has accumulated extensive engineering experience in port automation. Its technology has attracted attention from leading international port operators including PSA. DEEPLOCK will contribute real operating scenarios and equipment data to give the research a strong industrial foundation.
PolyU brings deep expertise in operations research, artificial intelligence and industrial engineering. Its researchers work at the international forefront of combinatorial optimization, machine learning and system simulation. The university team will apply its strengths in mathematical modeling and algorithm design to systematically model and optimize the workflow changes introduced by automated twistlock stations.
From theoretical models to port deployment
The collaboration will provide academic support for engineering optimization of DEEPLOCK's intelligent twistlock station while opening an important industrial application for PolyU's operations research and AI capabilities. Building on three research themes, the partners will validate algorithmic models and dispatch systems in real deployments, completing a full loop from theory to simulation and field testing.
The two sides will continue expanding cooperation into areas including digital twins and intelligent logistics, jointly advancing safer, more efficient and more intelligent port operations.
