I'm not up to date on yacht electronics, maybe you can help me. I am looking for something like an "intelligent" autopilot: On a long distance yacht there is an autopilot, a chartplotter/GPS, radar, AIS. Usually combined in the form of a (e.g.) Raymarine display. So to design the autopilot in a way that it automatically avoids container ships with AIS or military ships without AIS but with radar signature and does not try to sail through islands should be easy to implement with existing hardware and a few lines of additional program code. I don't mean some fancy AI systems for superyachts that require a server room, 2 additional generators and a separate IT department. But a simple dont-ram-AIS-/dont-ram-radar-/dont-ram-land-function for a 50 foot yacht. Is there a ready-made solution on the market?
That is why there should always be somebody standing watch, isn’t it? I can’t imagine why anyone would want this.
AP, AIS, Radar and Sounders are aids to the person(s) on watch. Not a replacement. There are horror stories, some discussed here on YF, that further remind us to insure competent real people(s) on watch to avoid and maneuver away from dangers.
You are absolutely right. But still.. I have this vague idea of going on a long trip, all alone. If you do a circumnavigation with a sailing boat single handed people see you as a hero. If you do it on a powerboat people call you a massmurdering maniac. I might have to work a bit more on the concept of such a trip.
The solo sailors that circumnavigate the globe do it by sleeping no more than 20 or so minutes at a time. They average about 4 hours of cumulative sleep per 24 hour period. It's a days/weeks/months long voyage into chronic sleep deprivation.
And they often hit other boats, usually fishing vessels or cargoes in the busy waters of France and Spain
I have seen small 8 to 12 foot boats not show up on radar. Not enough metal I would guess. I am sure that these small boats will not have AIS and some don't even have a VHF. So having something automated would not work anyways. Now if your chart plotter give you CPA and suggested the best route around the target? That would be helpful in figuring distance to speed and may also help with other targets in the area. I have tried to cross Boston's outer harbor and it can be tuff at times. Boats entering, leaving and crossing. All at different speeds. BUT, to do it on its own, no.
That’s why I always run a split screen, usually 6 miles on one side and 1 mile on the other to make sure small boats show as to solo circumnavigation, the 3 remaining entrants in the Golden Globe are approaching the equator and the home stretch to France. They left back in October Solo, round the world, no stop, no assistance, no GPS, no modern equipment, boats under 40’ build before the 80s. They can Only use what was available to the original participant. They have EPIRBs and sat phone which can only be used to contact the race committee.
Again, its just a vague idea at the moment and it seems to be rather irresponsible. In busy waters you have to be on the helm, sure. You can do shorter day trips with a higher speed from harbor to harbor and sometimes you will have to stay up for 2 or 3 days. But the real problem is the ocean crossing part. Flying blind for 8 hours or arriving totally sleep deprived just to navigate a narrow lagoon or docking your boat in a funny current single handedly is no option. I took a shallow look at the OSCAR-System (sea.ai) which becomes popular for offshore racing sail boats. It works with an AI that processes the images of a Flir camera. The AI identifies objects in the water, so the focus seems to be improved situational awareness with no active component. Connecting this with radar/AIS/autopilot would be the next step. Maybe i am just a year to early.
It’s a very interesting idea. I like the suggestion of the system offering up a solution to a conflict with human input for the maneuver. Even in our modern aircraft with the ability to auto land and stop human intervention to a collision is still the only solution. The TCAS (traffic collision avoidance system)suggests a path to avoid the collision but the pilot has to perform the maneuver.
I think the problem with your idea / theory is that you don’t seem to have any experience owning a boat. Nobody, besides ocean racers, wants or can run a boat for days offshore alone. Especially power boats. You don’t seem to realize what s involved with that, beyond the driving a docking: maintenance cleaning cooking fixing etc. boating is supposed to be fun and doing it all alone is not
I fear to many advertisements from VP & Merc about self docking has influenced to many minds. If the junk can self dock a boat, why not drive around the world. Well, pin ball does not work that way or that well. Real boaters enjoy getting there. It is a recreation after all.
In the meantime, you would already be able to set alarms on several systems -- radar, depth, AIS, AP (e.g., XTE), maybe FLIR (dunno) -- and you could augment the normal alarm tones with a really loud klaxon or some such... -Chris
… and illegal under 1972 COLREG Rule 5 : "every vessel shall at all times maintain a proper look-out by sight and hearing“
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