Introduction
This report introduces SmartNav and how it will greatly benefit the shipping industry of ships 300 gross tonnage and larger improving its efficiency and making sea travel safer. This product will greatly benefit seafarers, shipping and transport companies.
Background
16 of the world's cargo ships emit as much “lung-clogging sulphur pollution” as all the cars in the world (Pearce, 2009). Planning the shortest travel routes used by cargo ships, operating costs and the pollution produced by cargo ships can be reduced. From 2011 to 2019, there were 25614 ships involved in collisions. (EMSA, 2019) Ship collisions have many factors with human error being the largest factor.
According to the article “Modes of Transportation explained: Which type of cargo and freight transportation is the best?”(Carnarius, 2018), seaborne trading makes up 90% of global trading. Ocean freights are the preferred method of transportation due to being the cheapest method of shipping goods while also being able to transport high volume and heavy cargo which would not be transportable by air(Carnarius, 2018) (Refer to Appendix A). Ocean freights are also the most environmentally friendly method of transport while being able to transport goods around the world(Carnarius, 2018).
However, even while being the most efficient method of goods transportation, “shipping is responsible for up to 4% of all climate change emissions”(Vidal, 2009). Shipping produces up to 9% of nitrogen oxide and 30% of sulfur oxide pollution. This pollution is responsible for 60,000 deaths and costs up to $300 billion every year in combating lung and heart diseases(Vidal, 2009).
According to the article “HUMAN ERROR ACCOUNTS FOR 75% OF MARINE LIABILITY LOSSES” (Frith, 2017), human error accounts for between 75% to 96% of marine accidents. Maritime accidents cause many issues such as crew injuries, damaging cargo, the environment, and key infrastructures(Frith, 2017).
Problem Statement
There are products in the market that use GPS to plan routes but are lacking AIS, namely, the Garmin eTrex 20x. By integrating GPS and AIS, the ship will be able to navigate to the designated destination while detecting nearby ships to prevent collisions. Current products in the market use GPS to navigate the ship’s route. Considering just GPS, it could not detect ships within its range. SmartNav uses AIS to detect nearby ships to prevent collision and track and navigate to desired location.
Purpose Statement
The purpose of this report is to improve the efficiency of cargo ships, sailing it along the most efficient route and appropriate speed maximizing fuel efficiency as well as minimizing the risk of collision.
Proposed Solution
The proposed solution will be the SmartNav. It is a device that processes data from the onboard GPS and AIS and navigate the ship along the optimal route to maximize fuel efficiency while ensuring the prevention of collision with other ships. SmartNav will calculate the optimal route to its destination using input data from the GPS with fuel efficiency as its main consideration. While on this route, the ship uses AIS to detect the presence of surrounding ships nearby and determine measures needed in order to continue on the most optimal route while avoiding collision. An ideal navigation device automates steering of cargo ships through the integration of GPS and AIS.
Benefits
SmartNav will greatly benefit the cargo shipping industry by reducing overall shipping costs, optimizing travel routes, reducing emissions produced and increasing safety. Crew related expenses are responsible for up to 30% of a total ship’s operating cost. By reducing the required manpower needed to operate the ship, we can reduce the ship’s operating costs. Fuel costs make up to 60% of a cargo ship's total operating cost. By optimizing and utilizing SmartNav to plan the travel routes, we can reduce the fuel needed to operate the cargo ships. Thus, reducing the emissions produced and overall shipping costs. Up to 96% of all maritime accidents are caused by human errors. By minimizing the human element in ships, we can hopefully reduce the probability of maritime accidents.
Evaluations & Limitations
The limitations of the SmartNav are that the device relies on onboard technologies namely, GPS and AIS. As SmartNav takes in the data from these 2 systems, when one of the system malfunctions or gives incorrect data which would result in the ship being navigated along a sub-optimal route. This will cost more resources and even collisions. Furthermore, not all ships have AIS, smaller ships such as boats and sampans may not have AIS which may result in possible collisions with smaller ships.
SmartNav does not use radar which can detect objects near the ship. A ship’s radar range can detect objects up to 48 nautical miles away and can detect smaller boats near the ship. However, the radar range can be affected by many factors and will not be able to account for ships that are beyond this range which may affect the path of the ship.
Methodology
Secondary research sources were used as reference to acquire the information for our report.
Secondary Research
The team did thorough research on the current product in the market as comparison with our project to build a strong proposal. We
SmartNav is a device that merges two existing systems onboard ships, Automatic Identification System(AIS) and Global Positioning System(GPS).
Firstly, Automatic Identification System is a satellite tracking system used by pilot boats to detect nearby ships relative to their location. It provides the ships registered name, current position, course and relative speed, also the ship's travel history.
Secondly, the Global Positioning System is a navigational system used to tell their longitude and latitude in real time. Similar to maps, it can also produce a shortest/ fastest route to the destination.
SmartNav functions as a device that is mounted onto the helms of the ship and controls the movement and the throttle. Data collected from the two systems acts as an input and SmartNav will process them to attain a safe and most efficient route according to the GPS. SmartNav will then guide the ship along the set route. SmartNav is a realtime update device. This eliminates the need for ‘course made good’ which is a method currently used by navigator to counter factors such as drift which includes wind and current needed in order to travel straight. Eliminating the need to ‘course made good’ will affect in a shorter distance travelled, thus promoting efficiency. While proceeding along this route, if the AIS detects and picks up any other ships in or crossing its way, this signal will be sent to SmartNav. SmartNav will process for the next course of action then steer away and avoid collision.
Conclusion
In conclusion, SmartNav will increase the fuel efficiency of cargo ships and prevent collisions with other ships with AIS. Due to its ease of installation by using existing technologies onboard ships, it will not be difficult to install this device onboard current ships. If SmartNav is implemented in cargo ships worldwide, it will be possible to eliminate cargo ships collisions.
References
Pearce F. (2009, November 21). How 16 ships create as much pollution as all the cars in the world MailOnline https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-1229857/How-16-ships-create-pollution-cars-world.html
Carnarius J. (2018, March 20). Modes of Transportation explained: Which type of cargo and freight transportation is the best? https://www.freighthub.com/en/blog/modes-transportation-explained-best/
Frith J. (n.d) Human error accounts for 75% of marine liability losses. https://www.maritimejournal.com/news101/insurance,-legal-and-finance/human-error-accounts-for-75-of-marine-liability-losses
Stratiotis E. (2018, January 22). Fuel costs in ocean shipping. https://www.morethanshipping.com/fuel-costs-ocean-shipping/
Vidal J. (2009, April 9). Health risks of shipping pollution have been “underestimated” https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2009/apr/09/shipping-pollution
