Feature 3 | SURVEYING
Surveyor training gets a boost from virtual reality simulator
Norwegian classification society Det Norske Veritas (DNV) has developed a 3D simulator that is intended to make surveyor training more effective and quicker, than traditional methods.
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n May this year, DNV unveiled what is claimed to be a unique 3D survey simulator at the company’s new
technology centre in Gdynia, Poland. DNV expects that the use of sophisticated software technology, similar to that employed in the gaming industry, will improve surveyor training programmes, and hence safety, while also significantly reducing the time required to train surveyors to the required standard. DNV’s 3D survey simulator, which has
been developed in-house, allows a trainee to perform a large number of complete vessel surveys, learn about typical structures and the ‘hot spots’ of particular ship types and what might be the required repair solution for a particular defect, without leaving the office. According to DNV the system could shorten a standard training programme by around six months. Using the new system, trainees can
navigate all parts of a vessel while it is in dock, from the upper part of the superstructure to the ship’s double bottom. Tey can also carry out external inspections, including the hull and on deck areas, and check equipment onboard. Te 3D survey simulator, which is based
around digitised images of real vessels, allows trainees to conduct inspections and identify areas of non-compliance or damage in a controlled, interactive environment with a high degree of realism. According to Olav Nortun, DNV executive vice president: “Our younger surveyors are part of what is described as the ‘PlayStation generation’ and this tool is intended to reflect the fact that they have different expectations in terms of training.” Numerous different scenarios have been
built-in to the system to help surveyors visualise what they might face in a real onboard survey situation and trainees can adjust conditions, including the degree of
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DNV’s 3D simulator creates a realistic environment in which to train surveyors.
corrosion, weather and light, for example. Furthermore, various safety conflicts have been incorporated into the programme to encourage trainees to be more aware of the potential hazards they can face when surveying a vessel. Te simulator has various inspection
options, including ‘torchlight’ and ‘flyby’, and trainees can take virtual photographs of situations onboard that can be discussed later in the classroom. There is also a rafting option that can give surveyors a realistic experience of this means of inspection, which is used increasingly frequently as a cost-effective alternative to erecting scaffolding inside cargo tanks. DNV believes that the new 3D simulator
tool is unique to the shipping industry. According to Mr Nortun: “It is different to others as it is the first that incorporates a whole vessel and not just parts of it. Te fact that we can simulate in 3D gives trainees a better understanding of what it is like to be surveying in the field.”
A number of benefits are claimed
compared with traditional methods of training surveyors onboard vessels, which can present many practical problems. DNV points out for example that talking in a noisy shipboard environment and navigating narrow spaces in the double bottoms can make teaching and learning very difficult. At the moment the simulator contains
digitised models of a tanker and bulk carrier, but other vessel types will be added in future. In addition, while the first simulator is in Gdynia, other simulator centres with the 3D technology are expected to be opened over the next few years, probably starting in Asia in 2011. Initially DNV will use the simulator
to train its own surveyors. However the intention is eventually to market the technology for use in training third parties, including ship officers, superintendents and port state inspectors, and so there should be a wider benefit to the industry as a whole from this breakthrough. SRCT
Shiprepair and Conversion Technology 3rd Quarter 2010
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