SIMOCRANE Sway Control for STS

Quick and precise positioning, safe and stable operations

Innovative technology enhancing productivity and safety

Prevent Load Collision in Manual Mode

Crane operators must be focused when performing their work assignments in order to operate safely and quickly. The Siemens Cranes "Soft Approach" function assists crane operators minimizing risks of collision in manual operation. The system supports Hoist to perform soft-landing as well as for trolley to achieve smart-slow-down. Depending on fixed or variable obstacle, the crane will either stop in front of a mechanical structure or move softly to a next adjacent container.

[Description of Fig 1: Soft-landing and smart-slow-down graph showing speed profiles, safety margins, and variable obstacles for trolley and hoist movements.]

[Description of Fig 2: Hydraulic system combined with electric system diagram.]

Sway Controlled and damped in positioning

SIMOCRANE Sway Control System damps and controls the sway of the load using a complete and approved mathematic model. The system can adapt its behavior according to different required scenarios. For example, to tolerate some sway for quickly speed-up and to remove sway without overshooting at target position. A stable and repeatable movement ensures high productivity and safety.

Skew damping and Trim-List-Skew positioning

During crane movement, the container often has uncontrolled skew oscillation and unexpected trim/list/skew angle because of wind or unsymmetrical distributed load in the container. This phenomenon becomes visible especially before landing into ship cells or over the lash platform. This undesirable skew oscillation is uncontrollable for operators. As a solution, Siemens provides the skew-damping function, which can be executed either by a hydraulic system or by an electric system. In addition, TLS-positioning can help move the spreader automatically to the same TLS-position as last time, waterside or landside.

[Description of Fig 3: Definition of a blocked region, illustrating an obstacle and safety margin.]

'Blocked region' increases safety and flexibility

A blocked region is defined by an area with a physical or virtual obstacle plus a predefined safety margin. No movement is allowed inside this region except for 'Soft Approach' in Manual Mode. It is important to consider all obstacles in the calculation of the 2D-trajectory. Siemens Sway Control System provides four different ways to build up and update the blocked regions:

• By defining fixed obstacles during commissioning.
• By learning and moving if no additional bay scanner exists.
• By connecting with a point laser as a bay scanner.
• By receiving a complete 2D ship profile from a higher-level controller.

A safety margin is defined to cover sensor uncertainty and inaccuracy. In addition, various monitoring and reactions are implemented to make crane movement safe and efficient.

Selectable concepts for 2D-Trajectory

The 2D-trajectory calculation is usually carried out at the start of Semi-Automatic Mode (SAM), but it can also be triggered by a higher-level controller if the ship profile is updated after SAM starts. Additionally, the trajectory will be recalculated to dynamically adapt changes in maximum speed, target position, and ship profile on the fly for safety reasons.

To reach high productivity, the 2D-trajectory is based on time-optimized criteria. However, if a crane operator sits in the cabin, the 2D-trajectory considers their unwell feeling during backwards movement from waterside to landside. In this case, the system provides a trajectory with a later lowering point compared to cases where the operator is in a remote control room.

The figure below shows the spreader lowers later in the former case than the latter one. Here, the safer feeling of the crane driver is more important than time saving.

Besides, the half parabolic trajectory can be properly adapted to meet customer special requirements, like optical feeling.

[Description of Fig 4: Different concepts for cabin control and remote control, highlighting variations in trajectory and lowering points. It also notes the possibility to adapt the half parabolic trajectory.]

Semi-Automatic Operation

Altogether builds up the Semi-Automatic Operation. The Semi-Automatic Mode (SAM) from Siemens Sway Control System combines most of the described functions to move coordinately the hoist and trolley of an STS crane from its started position to a defined target, along a required optimized trajectory. Together with the Soft Approach function and TLS-control, SAM makes the semi-automatic operation efficient and safe.

A typical semi-automatic operation from waterside to landside:

A crane driver starts hoist with Manual Mode (MAN) until over the safety height, then switches over to SAM on the fly. After the container lowers to the safety height over the target in landside, the crane driver or a higher-level controller takes over for final landing, if required. Otherwise, the SAM can set the container directly to the final position. It is possible to activate Dual cycling operation with direct connection to the Terminal Operation System (TOS).

[Description of Fig 5: A graph showcasing a stable, repeatable, and safe movement profile achieved by SAM.]

[Description of Fig 6: A visual comparison of crane trajectories, illustrating the difference between movement with and without overshooting.]

CeCOMM - A powerful tool for commissioning and diagnostic

The SIMOCRANE CeCOMM program is designed for following commissioning and diagnostic tasks:

• Editing of parameter sets
• Monitoring important data
• Trace function for recording signals, interpolation points, and obstacles
• Optimizing performance and troubleshooting
• Graphic visualization of many parameters

Enhancing performance in a safer manner: Safety is an important precondition for SAM movement. At the same time, high productivity goals are achieved. Siemens Sway Control System minimizes overshooting at the end of positioning, hence shortens cycle time, especially while approaching a low target with rapid lowering speed.

A skillful crane operator applies different sway control strategies at acceleration and deceleration, which can reduce cycle time, too. However, human success can happen at random, unrepeatable, and in unsafe ways. This skillful behavior is now rebuilt in the SAM workflow with repeatable and stable performance enhancement, in a safer manner.

Integrated and Standalone Solutions

Integrated Solution: SIMOCRANE SC integrated STS, GSU order-number: 6GA72000AA011AA0 (Advanced Control)

Standalone solution: SIMOCRANE CESAR standalone STS, GSU order-number: 6GA72001AA011AA0 (Advanced Control)

Dual Cycling Operation

[Description of Fig 7: Depicts the Dual Cycling Operation process, showing the sequence from starting automatic operation and twistlock engagement to loading and unloading.]