Dynamical Study of a Moored Vessel Using Computer Vision

Abstract

[Abstract]: Wind and wave effects have a major impact on the design of mooring and anchoring systems, whose purpose is to prevent the movement of the cargo and the moored ship while optimizing the operations which have to take place in port. The dynamic behavior of a ship moored in waves has been mathematically described and interactions between ships and environmental loads have been commonly tested for different docks and mooring systems in scale models. However, the behavior of real ships in true mooring conditions has not been properly addressed in scientific literature. This paper proposes a novel computer vision technique to monitor moored ships. This approach uses the correlation of visual features in the images of the ship to estimate its movements along time. The proposed technique has been validated in laboratory conditions and applied in a real scenario to study the behavior of the ship Urania Mella in the Outer Port of A Coruña (Spain), in Punta Langosteira, obtaining very promising results.