ICT
Commerce is heavily dependent on sea freight, transporting valuable commodities across the globe. Between producer and purchaser, shipping containers are relayed within complex logistical chains, frequently encountering hazards that can cause delays or jeopardise profitability. Scientists of iMinds-Ghent University in Belgium are now piloting a standardised new system for monitoring containers’ location and status as part of the COMACOD project
Engineering new tracking systems and software to monitor sea freight
MAIN CONTACT:
Shipping is truly the lynchpin of the global economy,” reflects the International Maritime Organisation. “Without it,” they acknowledge, “intercontinental trade, the bulk transport of raw materials and the import/export
of
Ingrid Moerman Professor Dr Ingrid Moerman is staff member of the IBCN research group within iMinds - Ghent University where she is leading the research on wireless communication networks. Ingrid is also coordinating several interdisciplinary research projects.
Contact: Tel: +32 (0) 9 33 14925 Email:
ingrid.moerman@
intec.ugent.be Web:
http://www.iminds.be/en/re- search/overview-projects/p/detail/ comacod-2
affordable food and
manufactured goods would simply not be possible.” It’s a huge industry, in which over 8,000 million tonnes of cargo was loaded in 2013. Monitoring
the status of shipping
containers helps to ensure that extended supply chains are effectively managed, minimising wastage and curtailing loss. However, due to the contexts in which containers
are stored and transported,
existing technologies are often unusable. “Ports typically contain many containers, stacked three-dimensionally. Surrounded by metal on all sides, transmissions from wireless monitoring devices in such units are effectively blocked,” points
out
Professor Dr Ingrid Moerman, a researcher from iMinds-Ghent University specialising in wireless networks and communication. Together with colleague Jeroen Hoebeke, a
48 fellow member research of the
Communication Networks (IBCN)
group, Moerman
Internet-Based and Services is
heading the COMACOD (Control and Management of Constrained Devices) project which aims at implementing a more effective way of monitoring shipping containers, by transmitting measurement data
to stakeholders in a
standardised format. “Perishable commodities like especially sensitive humidity. If
to temperature these conditions convenient,
fruit are and
can be
accurately measured – from end to end – whilst merchandise is in transit, handlers and clients can be reassured that goods have
not been damaged. This adds
transparency to the entire process,” says Moerman. “Certain customers have already expressed their willingness to pay for this type
of information, so we’re also
considering viable business models, and how to make the technology profitable.” Neatly integrated sensors will detect, store
and relay this information to users, along with the containers’ GPS data. This is a
Insight Publishers | Projects
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