Radar Processor News

In 2014, Forbes Associate Director for Maritime Services at Control Risks stated that maritime risks are on the rise. Mariners and ship owner/operators experienced a 26% spike in maritime piracy and armed robbery since 2014  and the North Sea Oil Industry admitted that it had been targeted and thwarted cyber attacks, attacks that if successful could have caused untold financial and logistical damage. •    Within the last decade, plans to attack a cruise ship in a major U.S. port were revealed. Maritime surveillance systems play a key role monitoring sea lanes and ports while supporting worldwide maritime safety and security. The ability to operate effectively and securely in any environment (air, land or sea) depends on an acute awareness and understanding of the surrounding elements.

As part of the Lockheed Martin Canada prime contract for the Frigate Systems Upgrade project, a contract has been awarded to Kelvin Hughes to supply SharpEye radars and with an Agile Tracker to the New Zealand (NZ) Ministry of Defense. Kelvin Hughes will supply its S-Band solid state upmast 2D navigation and surveillance radar SharpEye, for two ship sets along with their tactical Naval MantaDigital display software and processors. The NZ Ministry of Defense has also selected Kelvin…

Kelvin Hughes, a designer and supplier of navigation and surveillance systems, announced that its SharpEye radar is now in continuous use on the world’s fastest ferry, operating between Argentina and Uruguay. Launched in Oct 2013 by the President of Argentina, Christina Fernandez de Kirchner, and operated by Buquebus of Uruguay, the ferry, named Francisco after the Argentinian-born Pope Francis, carries up to 1024 passengers and crew together with 150 cars on a daily basis between Buenos Aires and Montevideo.

Canadian based Rutter Technologies, a division of Rutter Inc. (TSX:RUT), and its Norwegian partner, Aptomar AS, announced orders for six Integrated Oil Spill Response and Management Systems. This comes on the heels of the recent certification of the technology by the Norwegian Clean Seas Association (NOFO) following the conclusion of trials in June. The Integrated Oil Spill Response and Management System provides operators with real-time information about the volume and thickest areas of an oil slick in order to maximize recovery efforts. It combines Rutter’s Sigma S6 radar processor and display with the Aptomar SECurus system. This integration gives the operator the ability make immediate decisions on oil slick detection both onboard vessels and onshore.

In October 2003, two successful installations of Transas VTS systems were completed in Namibian ports of Walvis Bay and Luderitz. These VTS projects were implemented in cooperation with Marine Data Systems (South Africa), the contractor and project coordinator. Two independent port surveillance systems fitted by Transas are primarily intended for assistance to Port Control operator to supervise ship traffic within the port area and help ship masters and pilots avoid collisions when following the approaching channel to the ports. The Walvis Bay port has two long approaching channels.

The long construction works of the port of Ho-Ping (Taiwan) development have been concluded with the successful launch of Transas VTS system there. The project has been implemented by Transas Marine Pacific in cooperation with their Taiwanese agent, Seven Seas Electronic.The new VTS system in Ho-Ping gives significant advantages to the industrial port as it makes it compliant with the VTS IMO/IALA regulations, improves port management system and essentially increases navigational safety in the area. Ho-Ping VTS incorporates two Bridge Master E radars (X- and S-band) in hot-stand configuration with full remote control/diagnostics and radar data processing provided by dedicated Transas VTS ORS-3 radar processor…

In May 2002, Transas installed its Navi-Harbour 3000 VTS systems in two Moroccan ports, Jorf Lasfar and Mohammedia. Transas has won these orders following the success of Soremar, its local distributor in Morocco and North Africa, in the international tender. The VTS system configurations ordered for the both ports are identical and comprise in each case a radar sensor with a Transas ORS-3 radar processor, Transas VTS Server used as Master operator station and one full-functional Operator Display Unit Workstation. The systems supplied provide target tracking within the area extending from 20 nautical miles outside the port to ship berthings on the port basin.

On June 29, Transas Marine UK and Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) signed a contract for the supply, installation and commissioning of a VTMS system for the Port of Mombasa in Kenya. The VTMS system will be installed and officially handed to KPA in February 2008. The main operator control room will be located inside the Port of Mombasa’s brand new 70m high Port Control Tower, and additional equipment will be installed at Ras Serani Station, Likoni Sector Light, and KPA Headquarters. At the time of contract signing, the preliminary scope of supply includes two high performance coastal surveillance radars, CCTV, Automatic Identification System (AIS) Base Stations, VHF & HF Base Stations, and other ancillary equipment.

A new installation of Transas VTS system took place in the middle of August at Heimaey, the main populated island in Vestmanneyjar archipelago southwest of the Icelandic mainland. The history of this project goes back several years, when the Icelandic Telecommunication Company were interested in acquiring a system intended to supervise/protect national submarine communications. A huge submarine cable integrated with the transatlantic submarine communication line between Europe and Northern America connects Iceland with the rest of the Globe. This cable has been damaged several times because of incorrect fishing and anchoring operations, consequently causing very expensive repair works often running into millions of US dollars.

Xenex Navigation Inc. introduced their new radar interface module. This module will greatly enhance the capacity of Xenex's multi-functional radar systems and development tools that combine ARPA functionality, radar control, electronic charting and radar image overlay. The new Xenex radar module is used throughout the new 2000 product series. IntegRadar software development tools for OEMs, and SafeHorizon radar surveillance systems," says Harvey Russell, President of Xenex. Xenex 2000 radar systems are compact and lightweight in an attractive blue rugged enclosure. Measuring only 6" by 12.5" by 3" and weighing only 6.2 pounds, they are mountable into the tightest compartments. come with built-in floppy and CDROM drives and a high-performance radar processor in a box.

Transas recently received two orders from the Namibian Ports Authority (NAMPORT) for Vessel Traffic Services (VTS) systems to be installed in two Namibian ports, Walvis Bay and Luderitz. The contracts were concluded after a joint proposal from Transas and Marine Data Systems in South Africa. Following the NAMPORT’s requirements Transas will supply two independent port surveillance systems that allow consistently high tracking performance of vessels within the ports, port approaches, and the surrounding area up to 24 nautical miles. Essentially the systems must provide automatic target detection, full recording/data logging, and are designed to operate in severe environmental conditions including high temperatures and high wind.

Kelvin Hughes Ltd., a leader in the development of marine electronics, recently introduced its Nucleus 3 Series Radar systems. The Nucleus 3 Series, which was developed from the Nucleus 2 Series, is touted by the manufacturer as a major enhancement as it meets the latest legislative requirements and is designed to increase system flexibility and performance. The design concept of the Nucleus 3 Series was to provide a system that uses as many common parts as possible throughout the range, an advanced architecture which has allowed the inclusion of additional printed circuit boards or units to widen the number of applications available to the system.