Marport spreads its wireless doors

A company statement said the product changes Include its Trawl Explorer – Digital Net Sounder, Multi-band Acoustic Receiver, Trawl Sensors, Door Angle Sensor, Trawl Speed Sensor, Symmetry Sensor, Grid Sensor, Double Distance Sensors, ScanMaster – Bridge Cabinet and Display Upgrade, CommandView™ – Sensor and Instrument Display Software

Wireless Broadband Transceiver and 3N1 Trawl Sensor.

Trawl Explorer

Marport claims this is the world’s most technically advanced and flexible digital net sounder saying it combines Marport’s latest wireless acoustic, signal processing and software technologies into a powerful yet cost effective digital net sounder. It also claims breakthroughs in long battery life, wireless digital. The underwater unit is designed for the toughest ocean conditions, it says.

The battery-operated wireless sounder is placed on the trawl head-rope or tunnel and provides deepwater sounding and long range data transmission. The unit digitally

processes sounder data to minimize the effects of underwater noise and interference and transmits the data via a wireless acoustic link to the ship’s hydrophone. The hydrophone is networked to an all-new multi-band acoustic receiver for enhanced signal detection and demodulation. The receiver encodes and transfers the data to a bridge processing computer using TCP/IP networking.

On the computer, Marport’s CommandView TE software presents 2-D and 3-D visualisations about trawl behaviour and the fish density in and around the trawl. Trawl Explorer provides the captain with crucial knowledge for effective, profitable and responsible fishing.

Oskar Axelsson, executive vice president of Marport said, the system “is especially suited for deep-water and bottom trawlers. The underwater sounder is 100% compatible with Furuno’s CN-24™ color net recorder. This compatibility can significantly lower total cost of ownership, especially when retrofitting or replacing lost or damaged underwater net sounders.”

Trawl Explorer has an operating depth of 2,000 metres and has a vessel transmission range of over 4,000 metres. Using the latest lithium-ion battery technology, the underwater unit has a battery life of more than 100 hours.

Captain Ellert Eiriksson of the F/V Otto N Thorlaksson said, “I have been using Marport’s new Trawl Explorer for several weeks. The uplink is very stable, with fast responding temperature and depth information. I have found the biggest advantage over other net sounders is the higher resolution in the trawl opening and exceptional battery life. On our last trip we still had 25% left of the battery capacity after 5 days of use.”

Multi-band Acoustic Receiver

Marport’s says its all-new acoustic receiver uses state-of-the-art digital signal processing hardware and software that helps eliminate the compromise between transmission range and signal detection. Advanced signal modulation and sampling techniques greatly improves the signal-to-noise ratio and helps reject acoustic signal multi-path and ship noise.

The receiver is capable of simultaneous operation on multiple bands with minimal overhead to system resources. It has integrated TCP/IP networking with a single power over Ethernet (POE) cable connection. The unit is capable of simultaneous monitoring of

4 hydrophones with automatic selection of the best signal available.

Sensors

Marport is also introducing several new trawl sensors including:

Door Angle Sensor

This sensor measures the roll and pitch angle of the trawl doors. Monitoring door stability helps ensure that the doors are in alignment and that the correct sweep angle and bottom contact are achieved. Properly aligned doors keep the trawl more hydrodynamic, thereby reducing fuel consumption and trawl stress during the tow.

3N1 Trawl Sensor

Marport and Skipper Electronics of Norway have entered a technical cooperation agreement to integrate Skipper’s latest generation dual axis electromagnetic speed transducer into Marport’s new 3N1 net sensor. The 3N1 sensor offers the utmost flexibility by being software configurable to operate as either a:

Trawl Speed Sensor - the trawl speed sensor measures the water flow through the trawl opening and tunnel. This sensor helps improve trawling efficiency by monitoring true trawl speed based upon prevailing currents and tides.

Symmetry Sensor - the symmetry sensor measures the direction and strength of cross currents that enter the trawl. Cross currents can cause a trawl to skew and greatly reduce its performance. By measuring cross currents, these effects can be reduced to zero by adjusting the warp lengths, thereby ensuring optimal trawl performance.

Grid Sensor - the grid sensor measures grid angle and water flow through the trawl. Changes in the grid angle inform about the cod end filling rate and helps the captain to maintain the optimum trawl fishing angle.

Double Distance Sensors

These sensors measure the distance and stability between the trawl doors during shooting, trawling and hauling operations. Double distance sensors are used in twin-rig trawling to measure the correct distance from the clump to both trawl doors. The sensors can be optionally configured to also measure depth and water temperature.

ScanMaster – Bridge Cabinet and Display Upgrade

Marport’s ScanMaster upgrade protects investments in existing sensor investment, extends the useful life of catch control systems and delivers increased performance and functionality.

ScanMaster is 100% compatible with Scanmar™ trawl sensors and hydrophones. By using Marport’s ScanMaster to upgrade older bridge equipment such as Scanmar’s CGM series, owners can leverage their investment and achieve significant savings. Plus, they’ll get advanced capabilities from their existing equipment. Marport’s ScanMaster system upgrade consists of three modules:- Multi-band Acoustic Receiver

- CommandView SM Software;- Bridge Processor and Display.

Marport’s bridge equipment performs reliably in adverse conditions while displaying vital trawl and sensor information to the captain. The processing unit uses the latest generation of quiet, small-form factor PCs with integrated networking. Product affordability is enhanced by sourcing and integrating commercially available hardware to deliver affordable solutions without sacrificing performance or reliability. The all-new 17” flat panel display delivers crystal clear images at 1280 x 1024 resolution. The display features a wide viewing angle and impressive 500:1 contrast ratio for sharp, crisp images - whether one is sitting in the captain’s chair or on the other side of the bridge. The rugged unit uses a single-piece high impact aluminum frame with a tempered glass panel with anti-reflective coating. An optional mounting kit provides a fast, affordable and compatible solution that puts the display exactly where it’s needed, Marport says.

CommandView -Sensor and Instrument Display Software

Marport, releasing Version 2.0 of its CommandView software during IceFish, says it is a sensor and instrument display software application which literally changes how mariners view and interpret complex sensor data. The software collects, integrates, and displays real time data from a wide variety of sensors in a true client/server network architecture.

CommandView server functions as an integrated sensor multiplexer, data logger, and server. It multiplexes NMEA-0183 data streams from a variety of shipboard sensors onto a single RS-232/422 serial data channel, and simultaneously on a TCP/IP network connection.

All incoming data can be logged for future playback and analysis. The server can use an integrated WiFi access point to wirelessly transmit real-time sensor date to any handheld PC, notebook or computer that’s operating CommandView client software.

The CommandView client software application provides critical sensor information at a glance.

Instead of a random mix of gauges and displays spread around the bridge, CommandView has the ability to show multiple instruments simultaneously on single or multiple computer monitors. If screen clutter becomes a concern, each screen can be toggled with a touch of a button. Additional display monitors may be easily added to for

increased virtual instrument gauges.

The virtual instrument gauges are similar to traditional marine display gauges, with the added advantage that they are user-configurable to display digital, graphical and analog modes. This design philosophy keeps operation simple and consistent by enabling the operator to decide how much sensor information to display and when to display it. CommandView dramatically improves situational awareness and enhances vessel operations by intuitively presenting sensor data in a comprehensible format.

Wireless Broadband Transceiver

Marport’s wireless is promoting its 2.4 GHz Broadband Wireless Transceiver that’s been ruggedised for the marine environment. The integrated unit includes radio transceiver, power amp and high-gain antenna, packaged in a robust enclosure. The unit offers high performance 54 Mbps WiFi (Wireless Fidelity) and supports IEEE 802.11b and 802.11g standards. The transceiver incorporates ad-hoc mesh networking and unrivaled link budget for long range data transmission. Marport has successfully deployed the transceivers during pair trawling operations in the challenging Northeast Atlantic. This has enabled the transmission of streaming sonar and radar data between the vessels. In addition, the captains use the high speed wireless network for voice over internet protocol (VoIP) communications, remote autopilot access and remote winch control. Data communications between the vessels have achieved typical ranges of 8-10 nautical miles with high quality throughput and stable connectivity. Captain Helgi Valdimarsson of F/V Isleifur said, “We have used Marport’s broadband solution with much success this past summer. We are using VoIP, streaming position and sonar data as well as winch information. We use the system also to control the other vessel’s autopilot. We look forward to further expansions of the system.”