Building universal storm diagrams to choose optimal route for sea vessels

Abstract

The paper considers the problem of choosing the optimal route for a sea vessel and the need to build universal storm diagrams that would show the possibility of avoiding the dangers of stormy navigation and at the same time make it possible to provide proper seaworthiness in bad weather conditions. The dangers of stormy navigation that affect the seaworthiness that a ship may encounter are described. The theoretical basis for creating this kind of diagrams is presented. A universal storm diagram was built using the Excel program, which is included in the standard Microsoft Office package. The task of choosing optimal route, taking into account the characteristics of the vessel for a particular vessel and given weather conditions, was set and solved. The characteristics of the vessel are presented. The solution was found using the constructed diagram. The zones of resonances of the main types of the ship's roll, the zone of parametric resonance, the zone of broaching and also predicted speed of the ship in waves have been calculated. The safest and, at the same time, the most efficient route for the ship under the conditions of this problem was chosen. A comparison was made of the behavior of a particular ship calculated using the proposed diagram, and the behavior of the same ship in practice. It has been established that the dangerous zones shown in the diagram coincide with the dangerous zones obtained from observation directly on the ship. The simplicity and accessibility of the proposed method for choosing the optimal combinations of course and speed when sailing in stormy weather conditions is proved. It is concluded that when implementing the proposed ideas, it is possible to achieve an increase in the level of navigation safety and an increase in the efficiency of maritime cargo transportation, while varying various optimality criteria.