The berthing of an ultra large ship is always a difficult issue and becomes yet more complex when vessels must be handled in restricted manoeuvring areas of limited depth, exposed to a forceful crosswind, or manoeuvring in a strong current, or all three. The final approaching manoeuvre and precise positioning is particularly demanding at container terminals where many STS cranes are located along the quay, seriously limiting margin for error in the process of mooring a ship, especially when the cranes are located nearby a bridge wing or at the very edge of the pier. In order to avoid collisions, the final manoeuvre (side-push) must be fully controlled; the ship’s orientation must be parallel with the quay while maintaining the minimum lateral approaching velocity without significantly shifting the vessel longitudinally. The mooring of a Ro-Ro vessel is occasionally even more challenging: a precise docking manoeuvre is normally executed without any towing assistance. In this paper low cost laser-based berthing and docking systems developed for the ports of Koper and Swinousce are presented and several berthing manoeuvres are analysed and compared with the most commonly used GNSS-based navigational aid system portable pilot units (PPU).

The paper presents the framework of usability testing of ECDIS equipment based on the IMO's Guidelines on Software Quality Assurance and Human-centred Design for e-Navigation. By incorporating the eye tracking techniques into the procedure it was possible to measure the visual attention distribution and the cognitive work-load. The presented method could be used to evaluate usability of every e-navigation system, which is necessary to ensure that the seafarers are able to successfully perform primary operations of systems upgraded with e-navigation functions, regardless of the type and specifications of the system and users' knowledge and experience with the system. The initial results are presented and discussed as the study is still ongoing.

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The paper describes a universal simulation method used by the authors to determine the conditions of safe operation of sea ferries, in terms of marine traffic engineering. The assumptions, simulation experiment and results are described on the example of the m/f Mazovia manoeuvring in the Port of Ystad. Carried out and described in the article simulation study using the present method was aimed to determine the possibility of adapting the propulsion and steering systems of the ferry including:• determination of the wind limits in the Port of Ystad in terms of Mazovia ferry operation;• assessment of the maneuvering safety in a port area and determination of conditions of safe operation with present propulsion and steering systems;• determination of the possibility of adapting the propulsion and steering systems to meet the requirements of the shipowner for the economically efficient and safe operation of the ferry.

Purpose: Navigational risk is a criterion for navigational safety assessment on fairways. To estimate navigational risk, we must determine the probability of an accident and its consequences. Design/Methodology/Approach: The authors have developed methods of determining navigational risks caused by deterioration in navigational conditions during the passage of ships through the waterway system and for the estimation of risk caused by shipboard equipment failures. In a simulation experiment, full ships with 5.000 DWT to 100.000 DWT capacity performed emergency stopping after rudder jamming. Findings: The results of simulation tests developed in the form of mathematical models constitute data for the determination of ship's navigational risk due to rudder failure. Practical implications: The models can be used for defining simplified relationships allowing authors to determine the width of safe emergency manoeuvring areas. Originality value: The procedure has been developed and navigation algorithms for determining the risk associated with the failure of the steering of the vessel passing through the different types of the fairway.

This paper presents the methodology, assumptions, and functionalities of an application developed during the realization of the project “South Baltic Oil Spill Response through Clean-up with Biogenic Oil Binders” (SBOIL). The SBOIL project is a continuation of the BioBind project, the primary goal of which was to develop and deploy an oil recovery system designed for use in coastal waters and adverse weather conditions. The goal of the SBOIL project was to use this new technology to improve the current response capabilities for cross-border oil spills. The developed application allows for the determination of the position of an aircraft at the time of dropping the oil binders, the determination of the oil binders’ position after falling in terms of a specific aircraft’s position, the determination of the position of oil binders after a certain time in order to plan the action of recovering it from the water surface, and the determination of the time when the binders will be in their assumed position.

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