Symbio Explorer Rannsóknarskip by Guo Qian

Symbio Explorer Rannsóknarskip by Guo Qian is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2026 A' Design Award í járni in Snekkju- og sjófartækjahönnun Competition Category.

JárnSnekkja· 2026

Symbio Explorer Rannsóknarskip

by Guo Qian

Client: Southern Marine Science And Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai)

A' Design Award í járni Winner in Snekkja Category

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The Design

About Symbio Explorer Rannsóknarskip

SymBio Explorer er sjálfstýrt rannsóknarskip hannað fyrir vísindaleiðangra á heimskautasvæðum. Skipið gegnir hlutverki móðurskips fyrir dróna í lofti, á yfirborði og neðansjávar, og hægt er að fjarstýra því. Samfelldar lífrænar sveigjur liggja frá stefni að skut og gefa skrokknum lífræna lögun án hvassra horna. Vinnubúnaður á borð við A-ramma lyftur er sjónrænt felldur inn í skrokkinn til að halda útlínunum heildstæðum. Bakborðsþilfarið er notað til að skjóta drónum á loft, en stjórnborðshliðin er notuð til að taka þá um borð. Skipið er 88,5 metrar að lengd og 14 metrar að breidd og notar alrafmagnað drifkerfi.

The Recognition

About the A' Design Award í járni

Symbio Explorer Rannsóknarskip vann A' Design Award í járni, virta viðurkenningu sem veitt er góðum hönnunarverkum sem uppfylla þær faglegu og iðnaðarlegu kröfur sem gerðar eru til vel hannaðra sköpunarverka. Sigurvegarar í járni sýna mikla færni, mikla sérhæfingu, sérfræðiskilning og skapandi getu höfunda sinna. Þess er vænst að Symbio Explorer Rannsóknarskip sé mjög metið, dáð og elskað sköpunarverk sem er hagnýtt og nýstárlegt. Þetta hönnunarverk sem vann A' Design Award í járni sameinar bestu starfsvenjur greinarinnar og hefur hæfa tæknilega eiginleika tengda þekkingu og hæfileikum. Symbio Explorer Rannsóknarskip er virt fyrir nákvæmni sína og er hannað til að veita lífsgæðabætur sem hjálpa til við að gera heiminn að betri stað.

Behind the Design

Press Kit

Credits, team members and technical details provided by the designer.

Unique Properties: Conventional research vessels follow engineering logic with industrial forms. This design challenges the fixed opinion by conceiving mothership as an entirely new species, a futuristic artificial-marine organism", a mysterious intelligent entity. It is neither a cold exploration instruments nor a larger whale, but a new aesthetics object, which emphasize a new ethics of species interaction, ecological balance and sustainable coexistence. It can achieve polar scientific expedition. The Design enhance visual ruggedness and embody the spirit of exploration.
Dimensions & Packaging: Designed Displacement 2100 tons; Length 88.5 meters; Width 14.0 meters; Depth 6.1 meters; Maximum speed 18 knots; Economic speed 13 knots; Fully Electric Propulsion ；Autonomous Navigation and Remote Control;
Tags: i-ship , Symbiosis, Biology, artificial-marine organism, Intelligence
Production Technology: The design employs continuous organic curves throughout form and detail. From bow to stern, from bridge to drone deck, the fluidity of these curves achieves formal closure while integrating functional requirements into a unified biomorphic envelope. This approach eliminates fragmented lines and rigid orthogonal geometries typical of modernist industrial design. Through the comprehensive application of form, material, and color, operational equipment such as A-frame hoists are visually absorbed into the hull, reducing their perceptual prominence and reinforcing the continuity of the overall silhouette.
Design Challenge: The overall spatial layout is the key to ship design. Engineers are mainly responsible for organizing functional relationships and improving the efficiency of equipment and pipeline layout and placement. Designers consider the skeletal proportions and overall appearance of the appearance, as well as the humanized content such as the behavior and experience, perception and comfort of scientists and crew members. The challenge of the project lies in the communication, collaboration, debate, and compromise between designers and engineers.
Research: The form research by two steps, named "reverse engineering". Firstly, polyurethane foam and oil sludge are used as materials, and the model is manually made at a scale of 1:100. Then, the solid model is taken as the object, and key point sets are collected by laser, and then imported into the 3D software (Rhino 7.0 version) for parametric design modification.
Inspiration: SymBio Explorer imagines the research vessel as a new species, proposes an "artificial-marine organism" between machine and living creature. The biomorphic silhouette externalizes its identity as an intelligent unmanned system mothership. Merging "Symbiosis" and "Biology," it embodies a new ecological ethics: the ocean is not a resource to exploit, but an entity coexisting with humanity.
Project Duration: The project started in June 2024 in Guangzhou and finished in May 2025 in Beijing.
Operation Flow: The SymBio Explorer is an autonomous, remotely-operable research vessel serving as a coordinated mothership for aerial, surface, and underwater drone systems. Certified with i-ship (No, R1, M, I) intelligent notation, it achieves autonomous navigation in open waters, assisted berthing, remote monitoring, equipment diagnostics, and predictive analysis. The port deck serves as UAV launch platform while starboard accommodates recovery; stern-mounted systems deploy surface craft and submersibles.
Image Credits: Image #1: Modeling and Rendering, Mothership, Zhou Rui, Li Tianyu;
Image #2: Modeling and Rendering, silhouette, Zhou Rui, Li Tianyu;
Image #3: Modeling and Rendering, iceberg, Zhou Rui, Li Tianyu;
Image #4: Modeling and Rendering, 45 degree, Zhou Rui, Li Tianyu;
Image #5: Modeling and Rendering, close up, Zhou Rui, Li Tianyu;