Modeling of ship navigation risk field for the icebreaker escort operations based on an artificial potential field

Journal article, 2024

To assess the risk of a ship colliding and getting stuck in ice accidents, this study aims to analyze and quantify the ship navigation risk for icebreaker escort operations concerning the mutual relationship between the icebreaker and the assisted ship following the icebreaker and that between the assisted ship and sea ice. We propose a concept and model of a ship navigation risk field under an icebreaker escort operation based on an artificial potential field, including the icebreaker and sea ice risk fields. The icebreaker risk field quantifies the collision risk level between the icebreaker and the assisted ship, while the sea ice risk field quantifies the level of collision risk between the assisted ship and sea ice. The model can calculate the safe following distance between the icebreaker and the assisted ship. Finally, based on the marshaling navigation data of the TianYou ship in the Arctic, 2018, a ship navigation risk field model for an icebreaker escort operation is constructed for simulation verification. Results show that the proposed model is feasible and practical, which can theoretically support safety research following the distance between the icebreaker and the assisted ship under the icebreaker escort operation.