A Digital Testbed system for marine control research: Application to ship autopilot development

DOI: https://doi.org/10.55228/JTST150301

Keywords

Digital Testbed, Marine Control Systems, Ship Dynamics Modeling, NMEA 0183, Communication, Ship Autopilot

Abstract

This paper presents a Digital Testbed system for marine control research, developed by the author. The novelty of the system lies in its modular architecture, which enables the integration of ship dynamics models, environmental models, and control algorithms within a unified platform, allowing researchers to quickly set up and conduct experiments. The system is developed at two levels: (i) Level 1, a centralized simulation on a single computer with the advantage of high computational speed, suitable for theoretical studies; and (ii) Level 2, in which modules operate on different computers and are interconnected via COM ports using the NMEA 0183 standard, enabling experiments under near real-world conditions and direct connection with marine equipment. The system supports various research directions, including the development and validation of control algorithms, the construction and calibration of ship dynamics models, as well as the study of environmental effects on ship motion. In this paper, the system operation is demonstrated through the testing of a ship autopilot at both levels of the system

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