Augmented reality for marine maintenance

The company said that the main benefit will give a field service engineer, a member of a ship’s crew or shipyard personnel, immediate access to the global expertise of Wärtsilä Seals & Bearings – regardless of where and when help is needed.

“Smart glasses – equipped with WiFi, Bluetooth, camera and microphone – enable real-time communication with a remotely located Wärtsilä expert who can see and hear exactly what happens on board, in dry dock or in a workshop, no matter how far the customer’s installation is,” said Thomas Pauly, product manager, Seals & Bearings Future Technologies, Wärtsilä.

Troubleshooting

Mr Pauly said that the use of augmented reality technology simplifies troubleshooting and speeds up the service and repair of stern tube equipment.

It also makes tasks like inspections, alignment measurements, on-site machining, shaft straightening and newbuilding commissioning much simpler and faster than before.

The technology allows a person on site to send and receive visual images, listen to the specialist’s advice and receive written instructions right in front of his eyes on see-through-displays. A Wärtsilä expert can guide the person on site through the actions he needs to perform to successfully troubleshoot.

Wärtsilä is carrying out pilots with selected customers to establish smart procedures for using augmented reality on installations in remote parts of the world where access is restricted, or onboard ships when there is no GSM signal.