Design and Experimental Analysis of a Novel Dynamic Positioning System for Offshore Optical Cable Test Vessel

With the development of exploration and exploitation of the ocean, offshore optical cable test vessels are utilized to work on deep sea areas which are far away from mainland. The traditional anchoring positioning technology has been difficult to meet the modern high standards and requirements of the deep-sea operating environment. Therefore, dynamic positioning technology for offshore optical cable test vessels have been gradually optimized and improved, which has been one of the mainstream methods of offshore optical cable test vessels positioning technology. In order to improve stability and availability of dynamic positioning technology, a novel positioning system for offshore optical cable test vessel is proposed in this article and utilized in a real offshore optical cable test vessel. Firstly, the mathematical model is founded according to the actual situation of real offshore optical cable test vessel, based on which the theoretical research on the propeller and controller is carried out. Secondly, high-precision navigation and positioning sensors, communication equipment and chips are employed to construct a dynamic positioning controller and related supporting systems. Finally, three different test including the step heading command control test, directional direct navigation test and directional direct navigation test are run on the real offshore optical cable test vessel respectively, and the results can verify that the positioning system is effective, stable and accurate.