This paper presents the design framework, in which a Decision Support System (DSS) tool has been developed to assist the bridge operator during a challenging navigation condition. The present project would be another step for using state of the art, IT devices and hardware, to increase safety at sea mainly focusing on both collision and grounding avoidance. In this paper, the modules to detect an obstacle and to calculate the evasive route are based on a customized simulation model: such a model is able to represent the dynamic behaviour of a ship, including hydrodynamics, propulsion, and control effects. The suggested route selected by the decision support system and some environmental parameters coupled with some of the ship parameters are visualized on a smart “virtual bridge” exploiting virtual reality techniques. A suitable graphical interface has been developed and installed, in order to enhance the situation awareness.
The project also focuses on the communication architecture, which relies on a publish-subscribe paradigm and is responsible to forward ship control parameters both to the virtual bridge and towards an ashore control centre, either for supervising or for remote control.
Overall, both the potentiality and the limits of the proposed system have been critically discussed.