Adoption of a multi-criteria approach for the selection of operational measures in a maritime environment

In recent times, there have been developments in the maritime industry that underscore the need to optimise operations to yield maximum productivity. Apart from this, stakeholders in this industry have also advocated improvements in seaport operations' critical areas. However, there is no known study in which the relationship between performance criteria and seaport operation measures is investigated. This study proposes a framework for selecting operation measures for the maritime industry. It uses stakeholders' expectations for operational criteria and fuzzy logic to design the framework. Nine criteria were considered in the framework, while Fuzzy VIKOR (VIsekriterijumska optimizacija I KOmpromisno Resenje) and fuzzy Shannon entropy were incorporated into it. The framework's applicability was tested using information that was obtained from Tin can port, Lagos, Nigeria. During this process, hinterland traffic diversion (A1), congestion pricing (A2), off-dock container yards (A3), Fast rail shuttles (A4), expanded rail connections (A5) were considered as alternatives for seaport operational measures. When the developed framework was used to analyse the collected information from Tin Can port, Lagos, Nigeria, the fuzzy VIKOR index ranked the alternatives as A1 » A2 » A3 » A5 » A4. Therefore, this study's insights show that mathematical models can be used to make informed seaports decisions.

NETWORKING LAYER FOR THE EVOLUTION OF MARITIME PORTS INTO A SMART ENVIRONMENT

The maritime transport is playing an increasing and critical role on the worldwide trade; because it guarantee the delivery of 80% of the goods worldwide. The maritime ports are the articulation of the maritime transports, and therefore are responsible of (long delay in the ports means high risks for goods deterioration, higher costs for the logistics companies, longer occupation of containers for containers management companies, etc. In recent years some publications are talking about smart ports. In this paper we take some of the most recent models of smart port, and propose some extensions by considering the recent recommendations from International Maritime Organization (IMO), which have been translated and issued legislation frameworks by the European Union, such as maritime environment monitoring, air pollution, etc. In the recent years, any “smart” environment is modeled through an Internet-of-Things (IoT) layered model. Thus, we discuss the model of smart port environment as IoT layered model, where the networking/communications layer plays the core role. Furthermore, we analyse the possible networking technologies which could support the different smart domains building the smart port environment. This is achieved by first defining the different sub-layers of the hierarchical communication layer, and then comparing different technologies for building the broadband mobile sub-layer.

Deep Learning-Based Maritime Environment Segmentation for Unmanned Surface Vehicles Using Superpixel Algorithms

Unmanned surface vehicles (USVs) are receiving increasing attention in recent years from both academia and industry. To make a high-level autonomy for USVs, the environment situational awareness is a key capability. However, due to the richness of the features in marine environments, as well as the complexity of the environment influenced by sun glare and sea fog, the development of a reliable situational awareness system remains a challenging problem that requires further studies. This paper, therefore, proposes a new deep semantic segmentation model together with a Simple Linear Iterative Clustering (SLIC) algorithm, for an accurate perception for various maritime environments. More specifically, powered by the SLIC algorithm, the new segmentation model can achieve refined results around obstacle edges and improved accuracy for water surface obstacle segmentation. The overall structure of the new model employs an encoder–decoder layout, and a superpixel refinement is embedded before final outputs. Three publicly available maritime image datasets are used in this paper to train and validate the segmentation model. The final output demonstrates that the proposed model can provide accurate results for obstacle segmentation.

Electrical and Energy Systems Integration for Maritime Environment-Friendly Transportation

The policies against climate change require the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions of marine transportation. To reach the planned goals, the most promising approach is working both on ships improvement and ports redesign. The latter must enable the new green ships supply with sustainable electrical energy, by integrating shore connection systems, local renewables, and energy storage systems. In this paper, a methodology to obtain such an objective is proposed, capable of taking into account both ships’ and ports’ characteristics. The methodology workflow is explained through a case study, where two shore connection power sizes and two different operative approaches for recharging the ship onboard energy storage are considered. A discussion about the most suitable energy storage technologies is also provided. The case study shows how the methodology can be applied, as well as demonstrating that the port infrastructure has a direct effect on the ship environmental performance.

Estimation of Aerosol Columnar Size Distribution from Spectral Extinction Data in Coastal and Maritime Environment

Aerosol columnar size distributions (SDs) are commonly provided by aerosol inversions based on measurements of both spectral extinction and sky radiance. These inversions developed for a fully clear sky offer few SDs for areas with abundant clouds. Here, we estimate SDs from spectral extinction data alone for cloudy coastal and maritime regions using aerosol refractive index (RI) obtained from chemical composition data. Our estimation involves finding volume and mean radius of lognormally distributed modes of an assumed bimodal size distribution through fitting of the spectral extinction data. We demonstrate that vertically integrated SDs obtained from aircraft measurements over a coastal site have distinct seasonal changes, and these changes are captured reasonably well by the estimated columnar SDs. We also demonstrate that similar seasonal changes occur at a maritime site, and columnar SDs retrieved from the combined extinction and sky radiance measurements are approximated quite well by their extinction only counterparts (correlation exceeds 0.9) during a 7-year period (2013–2019). The level of agreement between the estimated and retrieved SDs depends weakly on wavelength selection within a given spectral interval (roughly 0.4–1 µm). Since the extinction-based estimations can be performed frequently for partly cloudy skies, the number of periods where SDs can be found is greatly increased.

Kebijakan Pengadaan dan Customisasi CN-235 MPA (Maritime Patrol Aircraft) dalam Rangka Pengawasan wilayah ZEE dan ALKI di Indonesia

The potential of Indonesia's maritime natural resources is one of the targets desired by several countries from the international world to strengthen their economy. In addition to the natural resources it contains, Indonesia also has a strategic value for the world economy. The potential of Indonesia's maritime natural wealth demands the availability of qualified maritime security that can guard against acts of lawlessness, environmental pollution, exploitation of natural resources, navigational hazards, and territorial violations. Maritime Patrol Aircraft (MPA) is a tool that is considered appropriate to maintain security in the maritime environment. The purpose of this study is to describe the procurement and customization of N-235 MPA in the context of monitoring and securing the EEZ and ALKI areas in Indonesia. This study uses a descriptive approach. This type of research is descriptive qualitative. The result of the research is that the Maritime Patrol Aircraft with specifications in the form of a small aircraft (medium range aircraft) that is fuel efficient and does not require a long runway, to land so that it can land on an emergency runway (airship). This aircraft is suitable for reaching all sea border areas that are difficult to access in detecting suspicious activity, especially in the EEZ and ALKI areas. This aircraft has a radar with a wide range of monitors, surveillance cameras, and sophisticated weapons systems.