Marin and Royal IHC have completed the dynamic positioning (DP) assessment tests for the T60-18 service operation vessel (SOV) at MARIN’s basins in Wageningen, The Netherlands.
For the project (part-funded by a subsidy from TKI Wind Op Zee), IHC has developed technology that will allow one of its SOVs to navigate safely through an offshore wind farm and provide access to the turbines. The operations will be executed by the vessel’s autonomous software while under the supervision of the duty officer at the wheelhouse.
Following the powering and seakeeping tests, the DP assessment was the final series of model tests for the vessel, and will provide input for the ship models in IHC’s autonomous SOV simulator.
Upon completion of the project in December 2020, a simulator will be in operation that encompasses all functional systems of the autonomous vessel. The simulator will then be used to demonstrate the feasibility of the system and benchmark efficiencies.