A user test of Automatic Navigational Intention Exchange Support System using an intelligent ship-handling simulator

Abstract

Authors evaluated the feasibility of the “Automatic Navigational Intention Exchange Support System using AIS (ANIESS)”, which we have developed since 2007. ANIESS is a communication system to exchange navigational intensions (e.g. Port to Port passing) between encountered ships by using short-range communication means such as application specific message of automatic identification system (AIS). A series of simulator experiments for evaluation of the ANIESS were carried out participating five active seamen. The scenarios are composed of basic encounter situations. Each subject experienced the collision avoidance manoeuvre using the ANIESS and the automatic collision avoidance system (ACAS), which is installed to a simulator. Then, they assessed the collision avoidance manoeuvre using ANIESS subjectively regarding the way and the suitable time for the support of the ANIESS, comparing to their own usual operations. As the result, we found the appropriate way and time for the support. We also got some suggestions on the way and the time for starting collision avoidance manoeuvre to improve the ACAS. Finally, we confirmed the effectiveness in basic encounter condition from the subjective evaluation and also found some issues to improve the ANISS and ACAS.