Session: 07-02-01 Arctic Sea Transportation

Paper Number: 101455

101455 - Challenges of the Digital Transformation for Shipping: Human-Centered Design for Marine Navigation Systems 

The digital transformation of the marine industry presents opportunities and challenges for engineers, designers, and seafarers alike. These challenges are specifically acute in the context of the Arctic, where the presence of sea ice, severe metocean conditions, and limitations to modern charting and navigational aids present increased navigational challenges. Integration and further development of digital bridge tools can improve safety, but must take into account human factors concerns by drawing off literature and case studies where the human-machine interaction has broken down, leading to incidents. In this paper, the challenges of using digital bridge tools to support safe Arctic navigation are discussed as they relate to safe human-machine interaction. A case study of a passenger ship grounding in the Canadian Arctic is presented to demonstrate how failures in bridge equipment design and operation can contribute to accidents. This case study is discussed in relation to literature on human factors engineering and compared to other incidents where human factors was listed as a potential cause. These findings can be used to inform designers of marine navigation systems of the best practices to be aware of when implementing new technologies on the bridge of ships. Additionally, the implications of these findings on autonomous ship development and operation are discussed. 

Presenting Author: Jonathan Soper Memorial University of Newfoundland and Labrador

Presenting Author Biography: Jonathan is a PhD candidate at Memorial University of Newfoundland and Labrador. He holds a captain's license for small passenger vessels in Canada, a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering, and a master's degree in Ocean and Naval Architectural Engineering. His studies focus on human factors engineering for navigation in an arctic environment.

Authors:

Jonathan Soper Memorial University of Newfoundland and Labrador
Jennifer Smith Fisheries and Marine Institute
Thomas Browne National Research Council
Brian Veitch Memorial University of Newfoundland and Labrador