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SAFETRAWL
SAFETRAWL is an innovation project for OVIS vzw in cooperation with the Antwerp maritime academy (AMA). Fishing trawlers are fishing vessels that drag fishing nets along the the bottom of the sea or in midwater at a specified depth. These fishing vessels (< 24m) no longer have a righting moment in 25% of the operational conditions examined. This, in combination with the large forces on the trawling beams, means that they have some serious stability issues. In the past years, this has led to a couple of catastrophic capsizing incidents in Belgium and the Netherlands. This project aims to build a warning system that notifies the captain with visual and auditory signals in case of dangerous situations where capsizing is imminent. 
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A cooperative system

Using an industrial grade inclination sensor to track the  rolling behaviour of the vessel, a calculation algoritm determines if the fishing vessel is in a dangerous situation or not. This data is represented in a simple and intuitive display that changes color (green-orange-red) according to the danger level. Other key information like the list-angle [°], peak values of port and starboard [°] and the rolling period [sec] is also displayed on the screen at the bridge of the fishing vessel. For the development we closely work together with the fishermen that provide us with feedback about the system in several trial runs. These testing periods also provide real-life data that is being logged. This data is then analysed by the Antwerp Maritime Academy (AMA) to more accurately define the critical angles and timing of the system. 
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