The diving and construction support ship Acergy Osprey was in June issued the first ever Hardware In the Loop test certificate following successful tests of the dynamic positioning system onboard.

The Acergy Osprey is a 100 m class, diving support, construction ship. The ship is designed to perform various subsea work tasks, and is equipped with diesel electric propulsion and a Class III dynamic positioning system.

The safe operation of a vessel is more and more depending on complex and critical onboard control systems, such as dynamic positioning. Because of this, those who charter the ships (e.g. major oil companies) are requesting improved performance and verification of the safety of the vessels.

Since 2003, DNV has in cooperation with the Norwegian company Marine Cybernetics been developing a new test and certification regime called Hardware In the Loop (HIL) testing. HIL testing is a test method which can be utilized to assist in the verification of adequate performance and safety levels of the complex onboard systems. The CyberSea HIL simulator provided by Marine Cybernetics enables a wide range of detailed testing of control systems both at the factory, during commissioning, and in the sailing phase.

Date: 2006-08-25