Vessel Control Lever Limiting for Restricted Water Navigation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing vessel sailing systems become complex and costly, and steersmen experience unfamiliar feelings due to automatic engine control changes when navigating specific water areas, making it difficult to maintain appropriate sailing speeds and avoid hazards.
Innovation Solution
A sailing assisting system that includes a movable controlling device, actuator, positional information acquisition unit, determination unit, and control unit to limit the movable range of the controlling device when entering specific water areas, preventing excessive speed or contact with the seabed, and notifying the steersman to ensure safe navigation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the control parameters of the engine are changed automatically by a computer to limit sailing speed or prevent entry into specific water areas, then the sailing safety is improved, but the complexity of the control system increases and production costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the speed limiting function from the engine control system and implements it separately by limiting the movable range of the controlling device (throttle lever). This separation simplifies the overall control system while maintaining safety, as the limiting function operates independently through mechanical means rather than requiring complex computer control integration.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a determination unit as an intermediary that processes positional information and generates determination results, which then guide the control unit's actions. This intermediary layer simplifies the control logic by clearly separating the functions of position assessment and control execution, making the system more manageable and less complex.
2Reliability
If the control parameters of the engine are changed automatically by a computer, then the sailing speed control is improved, but the steersman experiences strange feeling and difficulty in understanding the changes
Solution Approach 1:
The system allows the steersman to directly operate the controlling device within a limited movable range, maintaining direct control and understanding of the engine's response. The system serves itself by automatically determining position and adjusting the movable range limits, while the steersman retains intuitive control over speed adjustments within the permitted range.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of the computer automatically adjusting engine parameters in response to steersman input, the system inverts the approach by having the computer limit the controllable range of the steersman's input device. This reversal maintains the steersman's direct control and understanding while achieving automated speed management through boundary constraints rather than parameter manipulation.
3Reliability
If the movable range of the controlling device is limited by controlling the actuator, then the sailing speed is maintained within required limits, but the production costs of the propelling system increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs cost-effective components for the actuator and controlling device, using standard mechanical elements rather than expensive specialized components. The system accepts that the controlling device may need replacement or adjustment over time, opting for economical solutions that achieve the speed limiting function without requiring high-cost durable components.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts the speed control function from the main engine control system and implements it through a separate, simpler mechanism that limits the movable range of the controlling device. This extraction allows the use of less expensive components for the limiting function while maintaining the primary engine control system's integrity and reducing overall production costs.
Data Source
AI summary
A sailing assisting system is provided in which a sailing assist for a vessel which enters a specific water area where sailing of the vessel is limited is realized through a simple configuration and in which a steersman is prevented from having strange feeling. A sailing assisting system includes movable controlling devices (a shift and throttle controller, a steering device, a trim switch), actuators (a rotational shaft drive unit, a shaft drive unit, a switch drive unit) for driving these controlling devices, and a control unit for executing a notification operation and controlling the actuators to limit movable ranges of the controlling devices if a hull is determined to stay within a specific water area where the sailing of the hull is limited based on information on the specific water area and information on the position of the hull.