MARINET, an industry association, introduced virtual reality (VR) simulators for seafarer training during Expo Maritime Philippines 2023.
According to MARINET, the simulators can create a complete picture of both the navigational environment and the equipment on the ship’s bridge merging virtual interaction with controls and devices. In addition, mathematical models of simulators model the state and the behavior of the ship’s equipment and its interfaces.
The VR simulator is already available for training centers. The developers also plan to make VR simulators available for the self-training of individual seafarers using cloud services.
That can significantly expand the training opportunities for seafarers, according to MARINET.
Alexander Pinskiy, chair of MARINET, claims that VR simulators would significantly improve and reduce the cost of training.
“Firstly, they allow to quickly deploy training equipment in almost any room at minimal cost, which increases the number of trainees and reduces training cost. Secondly, they make it possible to simulate a specific vessel a seafarer would have to work, i.e. significantly improve the quality of training for a specific mission,” he said.
