HMS Victory: AI used to help preserve Portsmouth ship

HMS Victory was built during the Seven Years’ War and completed in 1765

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is being used to help preserve part of Vice-Admiral Lord Nelson's flagship HMS Victory.

Based in Portsmouth's Historic Dockyard, the warship is undergoing a 10-year conservation scheme.

University of Southampton students have applied AI technology to thousands of images taken of the 259-year-old ship.

It will prevent vital historical information from being lost forever, a university archaeologist said.

HMS Victory is best-known for its role in the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805 and is the world's oldest naval ship still in commission.

The ship is currently in a dry dock

The renovation work, at the National Museum of the Royal Navy, has seen craftspeople replacing the decayed planking of the hull and the damaged frames of the ship.

Part of this process involves documenting the vessel, with high-resolution images taken to produce accurate 3D digital models.

The process has been automated by an AI algorithm, which Dr Rodrigo Pacheco-Ruiz from the University of Southampton said had made the images "high resolution, complex and detailed".

"Archaeologists are obsessed with detail and if records are not accurately stored, vital historical information could be lost forever," the archaeologist said.

"The project is really at the forefront of how AI is being used in archaeology... it's certainly a long way from the traditional perception of how an archaeologist spends their time."

Three Masters students helped develop the AI algorithm and used it to document the ship's decaying wood

Previously a curator would add a short description of an object to a physical catalogue card but now they must record more detailed information so items can be catalogued digitally.

The data could also allow the public to view the ship online, rather than visiting in person.

Amy Adams, the museum's collections information and access manager, said: "The opportunity to share knowledge worldwide and engage more and more people in our nation's maritime history is huge."

HMS Victory's restoration is due to be completed in just under 10 years, at a cost of £40-£45m.

This story has been amended. A previous version also mentioned HMS Victory (1737) which is a different ship.

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