PIANC Smart Rivers 2022

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Abstract : *(250~1000 words)

Aids to navigation are established to assist vessels in the navigation with special importance in narrow channels, rivers, or areas with special dangers to navigation.

Whether the design of the aids to navigation (AtoN) is optimum depends on ship positioning, which is affected by several factors, waterway geometry, metocean conditions, design ship, pilotage, and the Aids to Navigation themselves. Therefore, AtoNs are a crucial part of the design of a waterway for ship sizes and are to be analysed and evaluated together with the waterway design and ships manoeuvrability.

AtoN assist vessels providing information on ships positioning along the waterway, increasing the safety of the navigation by showing the safe area for ships to navigate by using visual references, either physical or virtual, PPUS ... Nevertheless, the availability of AtoN implies a certain error positioning of the ship in a waterway, which varies (increases or decreases) depending on the type of aid, the local conditions, and the distance between consecutive signals.

Optimizing the type of signal and the distance in between them allows, not only for safer navigation, but to expand the limits of the waterway by assisting larger vessels to move safely throughout the waterway, by optimising their position along the navigable area and reducing the effective navigable area required, as well as to minimize dredging costs and dredging area by optimising simultaneously the design of both: the waterway and the Aids to Navigation. This combined assessment and optimization allows to finally get both, technically and economically feasible projects without detriments on the safety of the waterway.

It is important to understand that there is a point in which by increasing the AtoN, the effective area of ships is not reduced. An optimum design point is to be found, or at least, an adequate one.

Two examples of the optimization or improvement of the Aids to Navigation to allow the access of larger vessels or reduce dredging costs are presented. For the assessment of the optimization in navigation conditions by improving aids to navigations, both fast time manoeuvring models and Real Time Manoeuvring Simulators have been used, as those are the most adequate tools to analyse in detail manoeuvring conditions of ships and waterways design.

The first example shows how the positioning errors of a waterway are determined based on existing Aids to Navigation. Based on those positioning errors several random manoeuvring simulations based on autopilot models are presented, allowing to statistically determine the safe area for navigation. Finally, those same manoeuvres are repeated by reducing the positioning error (reducing the waypoints dispersion) allowing to compare safe navigation areas with different positioning errors based on the improvement of Aids to Navigation.

The second example shows Real Time Simulation Manoeuvres of large container vessels departing from a terminal in a constrained basin which require to access a narrow channel. Based on those manoeuvres a statistical assessment based on PIANC WG121 report is presented to determine dredging requirements. After the evaluation of the dredging requirements of the first set of manoeuvres, it is possible to determine in which location, an improvement of the AtoN would allow to better position the ship and therefore reduce dredging costs.

The importance of assessing together the waterway design with the Aids to Navigation, and their optimization to reduce dredging costs or increase ship sizes on already existing areas, without reducing the safety of the maritime operations, is presented. The usage of fast time manoeuvring models and Real Time Simulations, to check and verify the optimization and improvements in the waterway and in the navigation conditions, is of essence in these assessments as allows to verify the effectiveness of the modifications before implementing them in the reality. Real Time Simulators and manoeuvring sessions are the perfect place for all stake holders (Port Authorities, Pilots, Harbour Masters, waterway designers, shipowners …) to interact, discuss, evaluate, and agree on the best option for the improvement of navigation conditions at the same time that preserving the safety of the operations.

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