Wärtsilä said it has developed a lock entry assist system that will facilitate a vessel’s approach and entrance into waterway locks.
The development work has been carried out in cooperation with the Canada-based CSL Group. The initial deployment of the technology will be on board the ‘CSL St Laurent’, a 22,600 gross tonnage Trillium class bulk carrier owned by CSL. The ship operates on the waterways of the St Lawrence Seaway and Great Lakes.
The Wärtsilä system comes in response to the increasing size of vessels operating on these waters. When entering the locks along the seaway, the clearance for larger vessels is minimal, and the lock entry itself has become increasingly difficult. Damage to both the ship and the lock walls can be avoided by facilitating the ship’s approach path to the locks, thereby making the operation safer, faster, and altogether more efficient.
The lock entry assist system uses high performance global navigation satellite systems (GNSS) to measure the ship’s position to centimeter accuracy as it enters the lock. Speed adaptive controls, together with allocation of the thruster and rudder, ensures that the vessel enters the lock in a consistent manner every time, while minimizing the influence of external forces from wind and current. During the entry, the system automatically controls the vessel’s lateral position and heading, allowing the operator to focus on controlling the speed of the vessel. A customized touchscreen interface is also being developed to simplify the operation and improve situational awareness.
Wärtsilä and CSL have established a close relationship over many years. CSL is the largest owner-operator of self-unloading ships in the world. Its fleet includes a number of Wärtsilä solutions, which are supported by Wärtsilä’s extensive service network.