Marine Vessel Vision Monitoring for Unattended Collision Risk
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing marine vessels lack effective systems to monitor and alert for elevated collision risks when unattended or not actively operated, as conventional sensors are resource-intensive or restricted when users are not present.
Innovation Solution
A vision system utilizing multiple cameras and processors to detect potential collisions by analyzing environmental data, generating alerts, and transmitting them to local or remote users when increased collision risk is detected.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional sensors are used to monitor collision risk, then detection capability is improved, but resource consumption increases and operation is restricted when users are not present
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the collision monitoring function from continuous operation and activates it only when needed (when the vessel is unattended). The system separates the monitoring function into an independent module that can be selectively enabled, allowing the main vessel systems to remain inactive and conserve energy when collision risk monitoring is not required.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary detection of vessel status (attended vs. unattended) and pre-activates the collision monitoring system only when the vessel transitions to an unattended state. This preliminary status check enables the system to avoid continuous operation while ensuring monitoring is active when needed, reducing overall resource consumption.
2Reliability
If conventional sensors are used to monitor collision risk, then detection capability is improved, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent makes the collision monitoring system universal by designing it to automatically adapt to different vessel states (attended or unattended). The same hardware infrastructure serves multiple purposes: monitoring when unattended, and remaining dormant or in low-power mode when attended. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate dedicated systems for different operational modes.
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically adjusts its operational state based on vessel status. When the vessel transitions from attended to unattended, the monitoring system automatically activates; when attended, it deactivates or reduces activity. This dynamic behavior simplifies the overall system architecture by using a single adaptable system rather than multiple fixed systems for different states.
3Reliability
If continuous monitoring is performed, then collision detection reliability is improved, but energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements periodic status checks to determine whether the vessel is attended or unattended, and activates collision monitoring only during periods when the vessel is unattended. Instead of continuous monitoring, the system uses periodic state assessment followed by conditional monitoring activation, significantly reducing energy consumption while maintaining reliability when needed.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary assessment of vessel occupancy status before initiating continuous collision monitoring. This preliminary check determines whether the high-energy continuous monitoring mode should be activated, ensuring that energy-intensive operations only occur when the vessel is unattended and collision risk monitoring is actually required.
Data Source
AI summary
A system for detecting collision risk to a secured marine vessel using a vision system of the marine vessel is provided, the system comprising: a plurality of cameras, including at least a first camera and a second camera, wherein each of the plurality of cameras is configured to be mounted to the marine vessel with an associated field of view of an environment of the marine vessel; one or more hardware processors configured to: determine that the marine vessel is secured; determine, based on image data generated by one or more of the plurality of cameras, that the marine vessel is at an increased risk of collision; and generate a collision alert based on the increased risk of collision.