The Institute of Transportation (IOT) yesterday announced that it has developed a system allowing seamen to report emergency situations to personnel onshore.
Institute researcher Horng Shiann-jorng (洪憲忠) said that many shipping firms have adopted automatic navigation systems, which in turn causes them to reduce the size of their onboard crews. However, ship crews may need assistance when they encounter technical problems at sea.
“The system becomes a platform where seamen and personnel onshore can speak to each other and jointly solve the problem,” he said.
The design of the system enables onshore personnel to monitor the statistics shown on the ship’s mainframe and compare them with diagrams they keep onshore, he said.
Onshore personnel can quickly identify if there is any abnormality, whether the ship is operating efficiently or needs to be docked for maintenance, he said.
The system would cost a shipping firm approximately NT$600,000 (US$18,900), which covers the computers, software and installation charges, Horng said.
If the system could be integrated into facilities already aboard a ship, the cost could potentially drop to NT$300,000, Horng said.
“Some shipping firms have spent more than NT$10 million purchasing similar equipment from overseas, and they have to spend additional charges on interpreting the results,” he said.
Horng said that the communication charges for the system were expected to be lowered by the end of this year, when the fleet broadband network would cover the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific oceans.
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