Indigenously Designed and Developed Control System for Sri Lankan Naval Vessels “Naval Propulsion and Steering Control” System

Abstract

Obsolescence of spares for Leader In Propulsion System (LIPS), Netherlands engine/steering control system Fast Attack Craft (FACs) of Sri Lanka Navy (SLN), will be nonoperational in the near future, and the manufacturer has provided a proposal for upgrading these at a cost of approximately Rs 93,9 Mn per craft in year 2017. Hence, this effort has been made by studying the existing system with the automation knowledge accessible. This study presents aspects of the engine and steering controls onboard P47 series FACs, by analysing the existing systems based on automation and the use of modern propulsion based on Programmable Logic Controllers (PLC .)Human Machine Interfaces (HMI )have been integrated for advanced monitoring and calibrating purposes which comprised a PLC based control system integrating sensors and actuators with commands given at the engine room, wheelhouse, and open bridge command panels .Processed command data are fed to actuators and the feedback have been obtained, thus forming a closed loop control system. These commands, feedback, and sensor readings are fed to PLCs and interfaced with the HMIs which indicate parameters in real time .Alarms and shutdowns have been set at the specific reference values and indicated on the monitoring displays. Controls are available at the engine room, wheel house, and open bridge for easy manoeuvrability as per operational requirement. The study covers the designing process, implementation process and PLC programming, HMI programming, simulation process, commissioning process, and testing process. Used PID controls in the feedback mechanism to optimize the control process variables are the most accurate and stable controller .The designed system was installed onboard P471 and tested several times under close supervision by experienced Senior Electrical Engineers as well as Senior Marine Engineers of SLN, prior to placing the craft as operational on 03rd January 2019. The cost for the project was only approximately a total of Rs. 3.6 Million which will save approximately Rs. 91.4 Million per craft.