Collision damage reduction system for watercrafts

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12528574-B2
Application number	US-202318154343-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 13, 2023
Priority date	Jan 17, 2022
Publication date	Jan 20, 2026
Grant date	Jan 20, 2026

Abstract

[Problem] To provide a collision damage reduction system for watercrafts, which system is usable even when a user watercraft stops or is moving at slow speed.
[Solution] A collision damage reduction system for watercrafts comprises: an information acquiring device for acquiring information on a user watercraft 2 and a target watercraft 11 ; a turning device for turning the user watercraft 2 to change a front-rear direction thereof; and a control device configured to acquire the information from the information acquiring device, and control the turning device based on the acquired information. When detecting a risk of collision between the user watercraft 2 and the target watercraft 11 , the control device controls the turning device such that the turning device turns the user watercraft 2 to a state in which the front-rear direction thereof is parallel to a moving direction of the target watercraft 11.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1 . A collision damage reduction system for watercrafts, comprising:
an information acquiring device including a surrounding area monitoring device and a GPS receiver, the surrounding area monitoring device including a millimeter-wave radar, a lidar, and/or cameras; a turning device, which is attached to a user watercraft that is a watercraft using the system, for turning the user watercraft to change a front-rear direction thereof, the turning device including a propulsion device, the propulsion device comprising single or two outboard motor(s)/engine(s), inboard motor(s)/engine(s) or inboard/outboard motor(s)/engine(s), each motor/engine including a propeller; and a control device which is including CPU and a memory, the control device configured to acquire the information from the information acquiring device, and control the turning device, wherein, the control device is configured to determine, based on the information received from the information acquiring device, a watercraft speed of the user watercraft, a distance between the user watercraft and a target watercraft that is a different watercraft from the user watercraft, a moving direction of the target watercraft with respect to the user watercraft, a relative speed of the target watercraft with respect to the user watercraft, and a heading direction of the user watercraft with respect to the moving direction of the target watercraft, when the moving direction of the target watercraft with respect to the user watercraft and the relative speed of the target watercraft with respect to the user watercraft are not changed and thereby collision is expected to occur between the target watercraft and the user watercraft within a predetermined time, the control device determines that there is a risk of collision between the user watercraft and the target watercraft, and when detecting a risky state of the user watercraft in which the watercraft speed is equal to or less than a predetermined value and there is the risk of collision between the user watercraft and the target watercraft, the control device controls a direction of the propeller with respect to the user watercraft, or a forward or reverse rotational direction of each propeller, such that the turning device turns the user watercraft to a parallel state in which the front-rear direction of the user watercraft is parallel to the moving direction of the target watercraft.

2 . The system as in claim 1 , wherein, when the user watercraft is turned to the parallel state, a front part of the user watercraft is directed to the side of the target watercraft.

3 . The system as in claim 2 , wherein, upon detecting the risky state, the control device controls the turning device such that, when the target watercraft is on the left side of the user watercraft, the turning device turns the user watercraft counterclockwise, and that, when the target watercraft is on the right side of the user watercraft, the turning device turns the user watercraft clockwise.

4 . The system as in claim 2 , wherein the front part of the user watercraft has a width which is tapered off frontward, as seen in a plan view,
wherein, after the control device detects the risky state and causes the turning device to turn the user watercraft to the parallel state, when determining that the user watercraft is still in the risky state, the control device controls the turning device such that the heading direction of the user watercraft is displaced from the direction toward a front of the target watercraft.

5 . The system as in claim 1 , wherein the turning device comprises the single outboard motor/engine,
wherein the single outboard motor/engine includes an upper part configured to be attached to the user watercraft, and a lower part configured to be rotatable with respect to the upper part about an axis extending vertically, wherein the lower part is provided with a propeller for providing propulsion to the user watercraft, and wherein the turning device turns the user watercraft by operating the propeller to provide propulsion to the user watercraft in a traverse direction of the user watercraft.

6 . The system as in claim 1 , wherein the turning device comprises the two outboard motors/engines attached to the user watercraft, and
wherein the turning device turns the user watercraft by operating one outboard motor/engine to provide frontward propulsion to the user watercraft, concurrently with operating the other outboard motor/engine to provide reverse propulsion to the user watercraft.

Assignees

• Honda Motor Co Ltd

Inventors

• Nojiri Daisuke

Classifications

• B63B49/00 Primary

  Arrangements of nautical instruments or navigational aids (nautical measuring instruments G01C; radio navigation, analogous arrangements using other waves G01S) · CPC title

• B63B2213/02

  using satellite radio beacon positioning systems, e.g. the Global Positioning System GPS · CPC title

• B63H2025/045

  making use of satellite radio beacon positioning systems, e.g. the Global Positioning System [GPS] · CPC title

• Y02A30/30

  in transportation, e.g. on roads, waterways or railways · CPC title

• B63B43/18

  preventing collision {or grounding}; reducing collision damage {(reducing pollution by collision B63B25/082)} · CPC title