## 5 Opportunities and Challenges
### Integration of Autonomous Ships as Mobile RAN Entities into the 6G Framework  
The incorporation of autonomous ships into mobile RAN entities leveraged by ATSSS features presents a substantial opportunity to enhance maritime communication environments, particularly in cases where deploying essential network infrastructures is challenging compared to terrestrial communication environments. This integration contributes to extending network coverage and capabilities, fostering a more adaptable and interconnected communication ecosystem in the maritime environment in addition to the inclusion of UAVs [48, 49] and more enhanced satellite components as mobile RAN entities within the framework of forthcoming 6G standardization. Moreover, autonomous ships can be integrated as network nodes serving as a relay node, like vehicles acting as mobile RAN entities which are exampled by the mobile Integrated Access and Backhaul (IAB) nodes mounted on vehicles, as outlined within the 3 GPP standardization framework [96; 97].  
Mobile objects like UAVs and vehicles initially served as UE and later evolved into mobile RAN entities to enhance coverage and connectivity in the 3 GPP framework. Similarly, autonomous ships are poised to revolutionize the concept of RAN entities in maritime communication environments, albeit with distinctive challenges compared to UAVs and vehicles, primarily stemming from the various sizes of ships, their specific movement patterns, and the intricacies of their navigation route, including the number of people on board.  
The conventional cellular network model, known for its characteristic communication coverage areas resembling hexagons or circles, with signal strength gradually diminishing from the center outward, has long served as the foundation for maximizing network capacity. When integrating autonomous ships into the realm of mobile RAN entities, applying this traditional approach becomes intricate. Within the maritime communication environment, especially with ships of substantial length (e.g., several hundred meters), relying on the traditional hexagonal or circular shape-based approach may prove suboptimal. Furthermore, the bulk of data traffic may primarily take place within the confines of a ship, with minimal data traffic extending beyond the ship's boundaries especially for ships navigating in oceans such as cruise ships. This suggests a potential need for high capacity of the network infrastructure in specific areas of the ship, and temporarily along the navigation route, like a stadium where tens of thousands of people watch concerts together for a few hours, using their mobile phones for various data exchanges with friends in the stadium or with family members at home. This can give rise to challenges such as sudden surges in data traffic along the ship's navigation routes. Consequently, the adoption of advanced technologies, such as ATSSS features enabling the simultaneous and efficient utilization of multiple RANs, including mobile RAN entities such as satellites, UAVs and autonomous ships, becomes critically necessary to efficiently manage the temporary data-traffic surges that occur along the ship's route, within the framework of 3 GPP standardization.