OE5663 Dynamic Positioning

Lecture 1 Introduction, Overview, Control Theory

CiTG room D
Dr. ir. Ing. H.T. Grimmelius, Ir A.R. Tjallema
05 September 2010
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3ME

Agenda
Course organisation
History of Dynamic Positioning (DP)
Application and modes of operation
System components
Vessel
DP control system
DP interface
DP market (manufacturers, available systems, )

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Course programme
1 Sept:
8 Sept:
15 Sept:
22 Sept:
29 Sept:
6 Oct/ 13 Oct:

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Introduction
Control theory
Concept Design (GustoMSC)
External Forces and Thrusters (Wrtsil)
Operational Aspects of DP (Bluewater)
Hydromechanical aspects
Measuring Systems (Bluewater)
Control systems
Design Exercise (Gusto)
Scale Model Exercise (TU)
Simulator Exercise (Bluewater, classroom)
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Course schedule

September 1th 2009

September 8th 2009

September 15th 2009

September 22th 2009

September 29th 2009

October 6th 2009

& October 13th 2009

Introduction
Control theory (H. Grimmelius TU Delft / Bluewater)
Concept Design (R. van t Veer Gusto)
Thrusters (T. v. Beek Wrtsil Propulsion NL)
Operational Aspects (A. Tjallema TU Delft / Bluewater)
Hydromechanical Aspects (R. Huijsmans TU Delft)
Control Systems (H. Grimmelius TU Delft)
Measuring Systems (A. Tjallema TU Delft / Bluewater)
Design Exercise (R. van t Veer Gusto)
DP Simulator Exercise (A. Tjallema TU Delft / Bluewater)
Demo DP scale model (H. Grimmelius TU Delft)

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Definition

Dynamic Positioning is a method to automatically

maintain a vessel on its position and/or heading or a
predefined track by use of its thrusters and/or rudders.

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Why use Dynamic Positioning?

Mooring in deep water

Track keeping (pipe/cable laying, dredging)
Quick disconnectable systems
Short lasting moorings (supply, diving support, fire
fighting etc.)
Combination of mobility and station keeping

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Strengths and weaknesses

Strengths:
Applicable in shallow and deep water
Cost & performance independent of water depth
Relative accuracy of position increases with water
depth
Quick mooring and disconnecting
No tugs required
No seabed/subsea infrastructure impairment
Rapid response to weather/operational changes
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Strengths and Weaknesses

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Strengths and weaknesses

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Strengths and Weaknesses

Weaknesses:
High CAPEX
Fuel consumption
Risk of loosing position due to equipment failure
Thrusters can be hazard for divers/ROVs
Position keeping relies on human operator
Maintenance
Not always usable in high seastates
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History

1961 Cuss I:
manual control

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History

1962 Eureka

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History

1968 Glomar Challenger:

deep water coring

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History

1971 Sedco 445, Pelican

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digital control

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History

Lorelay pipelay vessel with dp

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History

Thialf heavylift
vessel with dp

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History

1998 Deepwater Pathfinder

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for 3000 m depth

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History

Float-over operations

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Applications of DP systems

Drill rigs
Diving / ROV support
Pipe laying
Rock dumping
Dredging
(Tandem) offloading
Floating storage and production
Military
Yachts

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Applications of DP systems

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Modes of operation

Source: Kongsberg Maritime

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DP system layout

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DP System Layout

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DP System Layout

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DP control system
measurements

state estimation

environmental loads

position controller
required total thrust
thrust allocation

power management

thruster control

power settings

propulsion
control settings

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Position controller

Control surge, sway and yaw simultaneously

Early systems: simple PID control
Performance highly improved by:
Wind feed-forward
Smart thruster allocation
Heading priority
Modern control algorithms not often applied

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State estimation

Combine sensor inputs into one estimated state

(for instance position references)
Filter high-frequency motions -> Kalman Filter

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Classification

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Redundancy

Class 0

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Redundancy

Class 1

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Redundancy

Class 2

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Redundancy

Class 3

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DP market

Early systems : Honeywell, Alcatel, GEC

Current main suppliers:
Kongsberg Maritime
Converteam (former Alstom)
Imtech Marine & Offshore
Rolls Royce
L-3 communications

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Kongsberg DP system

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Imtech Marine & Offshore

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Rolls Royce Icon DP

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Converteam

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DP Capability

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Drift-off and drive-off

Drift-off: blackout, vessel drifts away

Drive-off: control-failure, vessel sails away
What is the available time to solve problem or
disconnect?

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Drift-off analysis

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Drive-off analysis

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Questions?

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After the break:

Control Theory

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