Marine Location Management for Precise Remote Docking
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Solution Overview
Problem
Operators of marine vessels face challenges in navigating to designated locations, such as marinas or docks, due to suboptimal docking or moorage positions, leading to inefficiencies and potential safety hazards, especially when multiple vessels approach simultaneously.
Innovation Solution
A dynamic positioning system that includes a marine location management system communicating with the vessel's control system to determine and transmit navigation plans, using thrust vectors to guide the vessel to a designated location, ensuring positional accuracy of up to 1 meter, and efficiently managing marina spaces by designating available locations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If operators manually navigate vessels to designated locations, then the system is simple and easy to operate, but the docking precision and safety are insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a marina management system as an intermediary between the operator and the vessel navigation. This system receives the vessel's current location, calculates the optimal docking position, determines the approach path, and transmits navigation instructions to the vessel. This mediator enables precise automated docking while keeping the operator interface simple, resolving the contradiction between docking precision and system complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces manual mechanical navigation with an automated computer-based system. The marina management system uses algorithms to calculate docking positions and generate navigation paths, substituting human operators' manual control with automated computational processes. This enables higher precision docking while maintaining ease of operation through automated thrust vector calculations and path optimization.
2Productivity
If multiple vessels approach the marina simultaneously, then the marina can serve more vessels, but traffic congestion and safety risks increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements preliminary action by having the marina management system pre-calculate optimal docking positions and approach paths for multiple vessels before they arrive at the marina. The system determines designated docking positions and generates navigation instructions in advance, allowing vessels to follow predetermined safe paths that prevent congestion and collisions, thereby increasing throughput while maintaining safety.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies segmentation by dividing the marina approach area into distinct navigation paths and assigning specific docking positions to individual vessels. The system segments the overall navigation task into discrete path segments with defined thrust vectors, allowing multiple vessels to operate simultaneously in different segments without interference, thus increasing productivity while preventing traffic congestion.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the marina manager designates docking locations, then the marina can manage vessel allocation, but the designated positions may not be optimal for each vessel's approach
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses parameter changes by dynamically adjusting docking position parameters based on each vessel's specific characteristics and approach conditions. The marina management system calculates optimal docking positions by considering vessel size, approach direction, current conditions, and other parameters, automatically adapting the designated location to each vessel's needs rather than using fixed predetermined positions, thereby achieving optimization without excessive management complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
The application relates to systems and techniques for remotely navigating a marine vessel. The systems can include a dynamic positioning system and/or a marine location management system for remotely navigating a marine vessel. The marine location management system can include a communication module for receiving a geographic location of the marine vessel and transmitting a navigation plan to a vessel control system. The marine location management system can also include a processor adapted to determine the geographical coordinates of the marine location and the marine vessel. In some cases, the marine vessel can include a thruster system adapted to receive the navigation plan and determine a set of thrust vectors based on the navigation plan.