Navigation Toolbar

The Navigation Toolbar is a freeware utility which can be used to calculate the most optimal ships course in a number of situations.

• Heavy weather navigation: calculating safe course/speed settings in heavy weather situations
• Maneuvering: calculating squat, airdraft, reduce-distance, wheel over point, and fuel consumption
• Voyage planning: calculating required speed and engine rpm settings on traject
• Voyage monitoring: monitoring progress along previous calculated traject, updating required engine rpm settings and fuel consumption

Note: Navigation Toolbar is released as FREEWARE, you are allowed to install and use this software completely for free.

Heavy Weather Navigation

The Heavy Weather Tool can be used to calculate the risks of synchronous or parametric rolling, pitching, or heaving in bad weather conditions.

Using the 'risks' tab the tool will give an overview of 'safe' (green) and 'unsafe' (red) course/speed combinations in a polar diagram.

After configuring your own vessel properties (see 'own vessel properties') you need to set the present stability (GM) in meters, as well as wind, wave, current, and water depth. Up to four different swell systems can be entered (each swell having a direction, height, and period). Note that the weather condition you enter here will be used in all other navigation tools as well.

By moving the cursor over de diagram, the corresponding course, logspeed, engine rpm setting, engine output power, and fuel consumption will be shown on the right, as well as indicators indicating the risk of excessive rolling or pitching in this condition. By moving the cursor to a green area on the diagram, you can view a safe course/speed combination for your vessel in this weather condition, avoiding damage to vessel or cargo.

The Wave Condition tab can be used to get an impression of the 'feel' of the sea under the weather conditions stated. It will show you the wave systems and their interaction (dark colors showing increasing wave heights) relative to your own vessel. Especially in complex situations with many interacting wave systems this can be very useful to get a better overview of the situation.

The 'Performance' tab will show you the vessels performance under the stated weather conditions. For engine rpm settings the number of miles run per metric ton of fuel is stated, enabling you to estimate the vessels performance at a certain course or engine rpm setting under the given weather conditions.

Maneuvering

Vessels squat and airdraft can be calculated using this dialog. Set the present draft (draft at zero speed), channel width, chartdepth, max. allowed airdraft and vessels heel and then move the rpm trackbar to the present engine rpm setting, where after draft forward, aft, port and starboard side will be displayed as well as present airdraft.

Note in this (and all other tabs) steered course will get red if course and speed combination will result in risk of excessive rolling, pitching, or heaving. Using the 'environment' tab you can set weather conditions at present position.

Draft and airdraft will get red when value exceeds chartdepth or max. allowed airdraft.

For any course change, the 'wheel over point' as well as the turning radius can be calculated. Set present weather conditions (advanced options under the 'environment' tab) as well as present engine rpm and steered course, next required course, and rate of turn setting.

The required distance and time to reduce engine rpm from 'full seaspeed' to 'full ahead' can be calculated for any engine rpm setting and weather condition.

By setting weather conditions, required electrical power, number of generators to run, distance to go, and present date and time the UTC ETA can be calculated at any engine rpm setting as well as required fuel consumption and total costs.

Note: more advanced voyage planning & monitoring tools are available under 'voyage planning' and 'voyage monitoring'.

Voyage Planning

The 'Traject Planning' tool allows you to plan a voyage by either loading an existing traject or entering an unlimited number of waypoints.

For each waypoint you can enter the expected weather conditions enroute to this waypoint as well as average chartdepth and any speed restrictions, etc.

After entering the voyage (or loading an existing file) you can save the data to hard disk for later reuse.

By setting the local date and time of Begin Seavoyage, and moving the engine rpm trackbar you can view the expected (local) time of arrival as well as the estimated total fuel consumption and total costs. Note this calculation takes into account expected weather conditions for each stretch of the voyage, chartdepth, as well as any speedrestrictions (you will see that vessels speed on this stretch will never exceed speed restrictions).

By selecting a waypoint in the list you can view properties of this waypoint, as well as a safety check for this particular stretch. Each time you move the engine rpm trackbar this safety check will be updated and warnings will show if any value exceeds safe limits. Using this method you can quickly check if any stretch on your voyage exceeds pre-set safety values (including excessive rolling, pitching, or heaving, as well as engine overload or squat exceeding chartdepth).

For each stretch of the voyage you can enter remarks which will be saved with the voyage-file. Using this option you can set special sailing instructions for each stretch of the voyage.

Voyage Monitoring

Voyage monitoring works almost exactly the same as voyage planning, however this tool allows you to monitor voyage progress at any position during the voyage.

After creating a voyage file with the voyage planning tool you can load this into the voyage monitoring tab, and then enter your present position as well as date and time by clicking the 'properties' button behind the 'present position' at the top of the dialog.

State all details of your present position and click 'OK'.

The Voyage monitoring screen will now show only the remaining voyage from your stated position (waypoints which are already past us will not be shown) and remaining voyage distance, estimated ETA, expected fuel consumption, and total cost will be shown for each engine rpm setting.

Note once again this takes into account expected weather conditions for each stretch of the voyage, average chartdepth, as well as any speed restrictions on any stretch. Calculations can be done via either rhumbline or greatcircle.

Note: version 9 of NavTools Route voyage planning & monitoring will be able to use voyage files created with navigation toolbar. NavTools Route will be able to connect to a GPS device and continuously update your voyage details from this device. Regularly check http://www.navtools.nl for the release of NavTools Route 9.