DYNAMIC POSITIONING

FNA Presentation

9/10/15

Contents :
What

is Dynamic Positioning ?
How the DP works ?
What are the uses of DP system ?
Advantages of DP system.
Disadvantages of DP system.

9/10/15

FNA Presentation

Dynamic Positioning
Dynamic

Positioning (DP) is a computercontrolled system to automatically

maintain a vessel's position and heading
by using its own propellers and thrusters.
Position reference sensors, combined
with wind sensors, motion sensors and
gyro compasses, provide information to
the computer pertaining to the vessel's
position and the magnitude and direction
of environmental forces affecting its
position.
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Working of DP system
The

computer program contains a

mathematical model of the vessel that
includes information pertaining to the wind
and current drag of the vessel and the
location of the thrusters. This knowledge,
combined with the sensor information, allows
the computer to calculate the required
steering angle and thruster output for each
thruster. This allows operations at sea where
mooring or anchoring is not feasible due to
deep water, congestion on the sea bottom
(pipelines, templates) or other problems .
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FNA Presentation

Usage :
Dynamic

positioning is used by
much of the offshore oil industry,
for example in the North Sea,
Persian Gulf, Gulf of Mexico, West
Africa, and off the coast of Brazil.
There are currently more than
1800 DP ships.

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FNA Presentation

Scope:
A ship can be considered to have six degrees of
freedom in its motion, i.e., it can move in any of
six axes.
Three of these involve translation:
surge (forward/astern)
sway (starboard/port)
heave (up/down)
and the other three rotation:
roll (rotation about surge axis)
pitch (rotation about sway axis)
yaw (rotation about heave axis)
Dynamic positioning is concerned primarily with
control of the ship in the horizontal plane, i.e.,
the three axes: surge, sway
and yaw.
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Advantages :
Maneuverability

is excellent; it is
easy to change position.
No anchor handling tugs are
required.
Not dependent on waterdepth.
Quick set-up.
Not limited by obstructed seabed

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FNA Presentation

Disadvantages:
Complex

systems with thrusters, extra

generators and controllers.
High initial costs of installation.
High fuel costs.
Chance of running off position by
system failures or blackouts.
Underwater hazards from thrusters for
divers and ROVs.
Higher maintenance of the mechanical
systems.
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FNA Presentation

Requirements:
A ship that is to be used for DP requires:
to maintain position and heading, first of all the
position and heading need to be known.
a control computer to calculate the required control
actions to maintain position and correct for position
errors.
thrust elements to apply forces to the ship as
demanded by the control system.
For most applications, the position reference systems
and thrust elements must be carefully considered
when designing a DP ship. In particular, for good
control of position in adverse weather, the thrust
capability of the ship in three axes must be adequate.

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FNA Presentation

Dynamic
positioning

Reference systems:
Position reference
system
Heading reference
system
sensors

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Reference system :
Position
reference
systems

Heading
reference
systems

sensors

DGPS,
Differential GPS.
Acoustics.
Riser Angle
Monitoring.
Light taut wire,
LTW.
DARPS.
RADius and
RadaScan.
Inertial
navigation

Gyrocompasses.
Ring-Laser
gyroscopes.
Fibre optic
gyroscopes.
Seapath

Wind sensors.
Draught sensors.

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Control system:

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Power and propulsion

system :
To

maintain position azimuth thrusters

(electric, L-drive or Z-drive) bow thrusters,
stern thrusters, water jets, rudders and
propellers are used.
The set-up depends on the DP class of the
ship. A Class 1 can be relatively simple,
whereas the system of a Class 3 ship is quite
complex.
On Class 2 and 3 ships, all computers and
reference systems should be powered
through a UPS.

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Redundancy :
Redundancy is the ability to withstand, while on DP mode,
the loss of equipment which is online, without losing
position and/or heading. A single failure can be, amongst
others:
Thruster failure
Generator failure
Powerbus failure (when generators are combined on one
powerbus)
Control computer failure
Position reference system failure
Reference system failure
For certain operations redundancy is not required. For
instance, if a survey ship loses its DP capability, there is
normally no risk of damage or injuries. These operations
will normally be done in Class 1.
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DP Operator:
To qualify as a DP operator the following path should be followed:

a DP Induction course

a minimum of 30 days seagoing DP familiarisation

a DP Advanced course

a minimum of 180 days watchkeeping on a DP ship

a statement of suitability by the master of a DP ship

When the watchkeeping is done on a Class 1 DP ship, a limited certificate will be

issued; otherwise a full certificate will be issued.
The DP training and certification scheme is operated by The Nautical Institute
(NI). The NI issue logbooks to trainees, they accredit training centres and control
the issuance of certification.
With ever more DP ships and with increasing manpower demands, the position
of DPO is gaining increasing prominence. This shifting landscape led to the
creation of The International Dynamic Positioning Operators Association (IDPOA)
in 2009. www.dpoperators.org

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FNA Presentation

Conclusion
:
Thus the Dynamic Positioning system
plays the major role in Offshore
engineering . And this DP system is
regarded as the useful technique in
the field of offshore engineering .

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!
!
U
O
Y
K
N
A
TH

Presented by ,
Manoj & Lakshman
9/10/15

FNA Presentation