Remote Watercraft Maneuvering with Distance-Based Warning

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing remote watercraft maneuvering systems lack a failsafe mechanism to prevent automatic return to a home point when communication is interrupted, which can be undesirable in scenarios with obstacles.

Innovation Solution

A remote watercraft maneuvering system that includes a watercraft control device and an input device, which calculates the distance between the input device and the watercraft and provides a notification when this distance exceeds a threshold, allowing the remote watercraft maneuverer to take preventive actions.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If a failsafe function similar to drone is applied to remote watercraft maneuvering, then the watercraft automatically returns to home point when communication is interrupted, but this causes problems when obstacles are present around the watercraft

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecommunication reliabilityVSAvoidobstacle collision risk

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The notification unit provides advance notification to the remote operator when the distance between input device and watercraft exceeds a threshold value. This preliminary warning allows the operator to take corrective action before communication interruption occurs, preventing the watercraft from automatically returning to home point in obstacle-prone areas.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #9Preliminary anti-action

Solution Approach 2:

The system calculates and monitors the distance between the input device and watercraft in advance, and provides notification before communication failure occurs. This preliminary action enables the operator to adjust the watercraft's position or route proactively, avoiding automatic return to home point when obstacles are present.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

2Reliability

If the watercraft operates in remote watercraft maneuvering mode with automatic return function, then communication interruption triggers automatic return to home point, but this reduces the remote operator's ability to maintain control

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecontrol reliabilityVSAvoidoperator control ability

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The notification unit provides feedback to the remote operator when the distance between input device and watercraft exceeds a threshold value. This feedback mechanism maintains operator awareness and control ability by alerting them to potential communication issues before they occur, allowing the operator to maintain manual control rather than triggering automatic return.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

3Device complexity

If no distance notification system is implemented, then the system remains simple, but the remote operator cannot anticipate potential risks of disabled remote maneuvering

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvesystem complexityVSAvoidmaneuvering safety

Core Design Contradiction:

Device complexityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The system calculates and monitors distance between input device and watercraft in advance, and provides notification before communication failure occurs. This preliminary action enables the operator to take preventive measures, improving maneuvering safety without requiring complex additional hardware beyond the notification mechanism.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Data Source

PatentUS20250181070A1Remote ship maneuvering system, ship control device, input device, remote ship maneuvering method, and program

Publication Date: 2025.06.05 NHK SPRING CO LTD

AI summary

A remote watercraft maneuvering system includes a watercraft and an input device. The watercraft includes an actuator having a function of generating a propulsion force of the watercraft and a function of causing the watercraft to generate a moment, a manipulation unit, a watercraft control device, a watercraft position detection unit, and a communication unit. The input device includes a communication unit, an input device position detection unit, a manipulation unit, and a notification unit. The watercraft control device has a normal watercraft maneuvering mode and a remote watercraft maneuvering mode. In the remote watercraft maneuvering mode, the communication unit of the watercraft receives information indicating the position of the input device from the input device, the watercraft control device calculates a distance between the input device and the watercraft, and the communication unit of the watercraft transmits information indicating that the distance between the input device and the watercraft is greater than or equal to a threshold value to the input device and the notification unit provides a notification for a remote watercraft maneuverer using the input device when the distance between the input device and the watercraft is greater than or equal to the threshold value. The threshold value is smaller than a maximum value of the distance between the input device and the watercraft when communication between the communication unit of the input device and the communication unit of the watercraft is possible.