Supporting e-Navigation

Ships’ bridges have become increasingly ‘smart’ with new pieces of navigation equipment and sophisticated systems introduced both onboard and ashore, primarily to improve safety, but also to improve navigational efficiency and fuel costs.

New equipment such as Automatic Identification Systems (AIS), Voyage Data Recorders (VDR), Simplified Voyage Data Recorders (S-VDR), Integrated Navigation Systems (INS), Integrated Bridge Systems (IBS), and numerous others, are found on state of the art navigational bridges, providing the mariner with vast amounts of useful information. Indeed, some of these tools are mandatory for vessels from regions covered by the International Convention on the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS).

However, despite the fact that these technological aids are available, they have not had the desired impact on safety. Human error remains the most important factor in maritime accidents , and navigational errors continue to account for huge losses. In fact, a 2012 Allianz report found that in the previous five years, there had been 85 insurance claims of over $1m of which over 50% were directly related to navigational issues .

On top of this, navigation is set to become more challenging. The navigable sea room for shipping is decreasing rapidly to make way for fishing, leisure, renewable energy and environmentally sensitive protection. At the same time the number and size of vessels is increasing.

In order to reduce navigational error, we must ensure that new technologies can aid, rather than hinder the mariner. They must be integrated under an overarching framework- just as all of the instruments in a large orchestra need to be tuned and harmonised to produce a good overall effect. e-Navigation, a concept developed by the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) together with the International Association of Lighthouse Authorities (IALA), plans to achieve just this by standardising disparate navigation systems in an all-embracing system. Such harmonised information should enhance situational awareness and decision support for mariners and consequently, enhance navigational safety and efficiency.

e-Navigation will connect ship and shore by powerful communication systems and help all the operators on board – captains, pilots, navigating officers, engineers, as well as the vessel traffic service (VTS) and search and rescue operators, to effectively fulfil the tasks they are responsible for. It will ensure that everyone is ‘on the same page’. More robust and efficient navigation would vastly improve the safety of shipping but also aid the protection of marine resources, save on fuel costs and reduce pollution.

In order to achieve this, e-Navigation must be organised and implemented in a way that makes it efficient and long lasting. There is a need for a comprehensive e-Navigation strategy to ensure that the required levels of service are provided for all modes of transport.

Efforts are being taken to implement such a strategy. The Norwegian Coastal Administration is currently coordinating the development of a proposal for an e-Navigation strategy implementation plan on behalf of the IMO. In addition to the IMO efforts, a number of regional projects are already demonstrating the potential of e-Navigation. The ACCSEAS project, an Interreg funded project led by the GLA and involving the countries around the North Sea region, is looking at how we exchange information between ship and shore. ACCSEAS follows on from the EfficienSea project in the Baltic coordinated by the Danish Maritime Safety Authority, building on many of the lessons learnt there and running in parallel with Mona Lisa 2 in the Baltic, coordinated by the Swedish Maritime Administration.

However, e-Navigation can never be fully implemented while so much dependence is placed on GPS and other GNSS systems for navigation. Because of the weakness of signals from satellites by the time they reach Earth, GPS is vulnerable to interference (both deliberate and intentional).

If we are to harmonise shore and ships systems through e-Navigation, we need to ensure that we would not be relying on systems that have a single point of failure, which would leave the mariner without navigational aid in the event of a loss of signal. Instead, we need the reliable provision of resilient position, navigation and timing data through an alternative that is independent to GPS.

eLoran, the low-frequency radio system is currently the most viable back up system. It is low cost and, due to the strength of signals, it is resilient to interference. For this reason, the General Lighthouse Authorities of the UK and Ireland has started rolling out eLoran around the coast of the UK. There are other possibilities, such as radar positioning, or ranging on existing signals, such as DGPS stations. These are also being investigated, although they present regulatory as well as technical challenges.

As yet, no uniform standards for backup systems have been implemented, potentially resulting in a multiplicity of incompatible systems. While a European Radio Navigation Plan (ERNP) has been considered for a number of years, it has not yet been finalised and maritime PNT remains vulnerable to disruption. It should be remembered that Europe, in common with most other parts of the world, is almost entirely dependent on maritime transport for its food, energy, raw materials and manufactured goods. One solution to this is a multi-system receiver which would work seamlessly with all systems and provide standardised data and such standards are being developed by IMO.

A common maritime data structure is a foundation for e-Navigation, rather than the patchwork of different system used now. Such a harmonized delivery of data is under active development in bodies such as IHO and IALA and this could lead to the standardisation of display for mariners use under e-Navigation, ultimately making it easier to navigate, reducing the chance of human error and improving efficiency.

There are a lot of forces at play here, and many reasons why progress has been slow. However, it is only by incorporating all of the factors mentioned in this article (a coherent e-Navigation strategy, resilient position, navigation and timing and uniformity of data) into a comprehensive strategy, that e-Navigation could genuinely help the mariner- or indeed reduce the numbers of incidents caused by navigational error.