SBIR-STTR Award

Since September FY 04, fuel price has increased 203% from $35.28 to $106.00 per barrel. As a result, energy conservation and fuel management have become extremely important to the mission readiness and effectiveness of US Navy surface ships. Unfortunately, current efforts are very labor-intensive and time-consuming. For example, to generate a single fuel consumption curve, Ships Force (S/F) must manually collect and analyze data while the ship operates at different speeds. Although the process only takes a few hours to accomplish, there are many different engine configurations, and all require separate fuel curves. As another example, fuel usage data must be manually collected, consolidated, and distributed throughout the fleet on a daily basis. The process occupies multiple resources, including the Chief Engineer, and utilizes antiquated modes of data collection and report distribution, including the use of paper logs. These processes require significant man-hours, and since both require manual inputs, both are very susceptible to error.

Benefit:
Since the majority of surface ships are equipped with Integrated Condition Assessment System (ICAS), the infrastructure is already in place for the development and integration of an automated energy conservation and fuel management tool. Utilizing the machinery performance data provided by ICAS, the tool would automatically collect, analyze, and present fuel usage data and would generate fuel curves to effectively monitor and manage fuel consumption. The information provided would allow S/F to view the current fuel status and optimize the ships operational profile based on real-time data. In addition, fuel usage data and fuel curves would provide main propulsion personnel with the capability to identify maintenance issues associated with propeller, hull, or machinery degradation that adversely affect fuel efficiency. To further reduce the dependency on manual processes, the tool would also electronically generate and distribute the Operations Summary (OPSUM) report and the Navy Energy Usage Reporting System (NEURS) report to the fleet.

Keywords:
MELS, MELS, IPAR, ENCON, EPAR, ICAS, NEURS

The objective of this SBIR is to develop and implement a shipboard tool that will help improve energy conservation and fuel management by providing situational awareness and automating current manual efforts. The tool will provide real-time data and will provide Ship''s Force with the tools necessary to make informed decisions regarding the ship’s speed, engine configuration, and fuel consumption. It will automate the existing labor-intensive process of manually generating fuel curves. It will automate the data collection, analysis, and subsequent report generation/distribution required for daily fuel usage reports. As a result, savings will be realized both in increased fuel efficiency and in reduced man-hours required to support fuel management efforts. The shipboard fuel conservation tool will meet the following technical objectives: Integrates with ICAS and other third-party databases Collects, analyzes, and presents fuel usage data Generates fuel consumption curves Generates and distributes NEURS reports Generates ad hoc reports Integrates with existing remote monitoring technologies Meets TRL Level 7 requirements

Keywords:
Cost Savings, Technology, , Fuel Conservation, Icas,