Simplifying speed measurement
The purpose of the lasers in a Berthing Aid System is to measure speed of the approaching ships in order to ensure safe berthing. In ports with large tidal range, problems arise at low tide because the ships are lower than the lasers. The previous models of lasers simply shoot over the side of a small ship at low tide.
In the past the solution to this problem was using an automatic or manual elevator that moved the laser up and down according to the tide.
Both elevators were expensive and problematic in terms of maintenance.
A new system, the LT300 has been developed to solve the tidal problem. This unit is a laser placed in a housing, which can rotate. This enables the laser to ‘scan’ vertically for the side of the ship (as shown in picture).
The laser tracker is turned on when the ship is approaching and will ‘scan’ up and down until it hits the side of the ship. It will then move down until it finds the water surface then back up into a fixed position. It will then track the ship from this fixed position and measure the distance. The tracker was developed by MARIMATECH.
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