Classification and certification of vessels with high degrees of automation will require demonstration of the possibility to solve complex operations in a safe and secure way. Running the SEAOPS case in DNV’s Simulation Trust Center marks a step on the road to achieving this target.
Ongoing technological development in the maritime industry is making the case for remotely and autonomously operated vessels in the future.
Simultaneously, the increasing complexity of integrated systems and software needed to give high levels of automation requires a need for thorough simulation-based testing to ensure well-functioning systems because real-life testing will not cover the need for assurance alone.
The target of the SEAOPS project, initiated by Brunvoll and supported by the Research Council of Norway, DNV, SINTEF, NTNU, and Holmeset, is to ensure that sophisticated control systems work properly before being taken into use in real operations.
Smart testing using Simulation Trust Center
From the outset the aims of SEAOPS were to develop and demonstrate safe and energy optimal line-vessel navigation to ensure efficient operation and less loss of catch during fishing.
DNV’s main objectives were to develop an automatic and large-scale simulation-based testing tool to be used in class and certification services, and to develop methodology for validating and certification of vendor simulators.
The methodology has been developed and the SEAOPS case has been run in DNV’s Simulation Trust Center (STC). In addition, smart scenario generation – whereby different parameters can be varied, or new parameters added – has also been demonstrated allowing for better verification of the software.
The benefits
Being able to run the simulation and control system on virtualized hardware in the cloud in STC can save both time and money.
In terms of the pilot project with the long-liner vessel, the owner is able to test more in a shorter period of time, and to test in a targeted way to find possible errors and improvement areas when using simulation-based testing.
Increasingly, vendors are using simulators to develop their control system. Now, vendors can continue to develop their simulator models, include them in the STC, and also achieve smart testing.
Market Potential
Smart testing using multiple scenarios and varying parameters was a key feature of the SEAOPS case, but it is not limited to that project.
The cloud-to-cloud communication, where the control system runs in the cloud environment provided by the control system vendor and the vessel simulation runs in the STC cloud, enables running many simulations at the same time without hardware being a constraint. It is possible to run multiple instances of the control system, each connected to a different simulation in the STC.
For more information:
SEAOPS Simulation-based testing solution - DNV
Simulation Trust Center Simulation Trust Center collaboration platform - DNV
Paper https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1742-6596/2311/1/012016
