Propulsion control system

The system offers various new electronic control and assistance features including faster actuation and more precise control of the propulsion systems, remote diagnostics via the Internet and communication through a range of interfaces, according to the company. It will be supplied for the first time in the last quarter of 2012 and be available as a series product from mid-2013 onwards.
To meet customer requests for a control and propulsion system from one source, Voith said it had developed the entire control system in-house for the first time. This is seen in the uniform Voith design of the bridge components: Joystick, steering wheel and propulsion control lever were developed in cooperation with Stuttgart University, taking ergonomic factors into account.
Thanks to the integrated architecture of propulsion and control system, Voith said it was now entering the market as a system supplier, resulting in faster response times for customer-specific solutions, lower expenses incurred for interface adaptation as well as reduced costs for commissioning.
To monitor the propulsion units, the new control system records all data as well as faults. Monitoring can be done from the bridge as well as from the machine or propeller room. In addition, the new electronic control and assistance features lower the fuel consumption of the propulsion units, according to Voith. The control features can be tested on Voith's own vessel simulator. Open interfaces to external systems ensure that existing components can continue to be used. Communication is via interfaces such as CAN bus, Modbus TCP/IP, Modbus RTU, Profibus DP or NMEA.
Practical implementation of the new control system will be in the last quarter of 2012 for a double-ended ferry as well as in the first quarter of 2013 for an OSV (offshore supply vessel).