Maritime Autonomous Surface Ship (MASS) has been developed recently, and demonstration projects have been carried out internationally. Considering the full autonomous level is unlikely to be addressed shortly, remote control centre and Remote Operator (RO) will play a vital role in the MASS system. Although competence of watchkeeping at the ship’s bridge is inevitable for RO to avoid ship accidents caused by human errors, international requirements have not been introduced yet. This paper presents a way to develop the regulatory framework on the competence of RO based on the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW) by exploring the concept of Situation Awareness (SA). Goal-Based Gap Analysis (GBGA) is constructed based on the human-behaviour model and the required information for SA. A case study through the mini focus group discussion with interviews by a total of three (3) veteran instructors of training ships is conducted utilising the information including the results of previous demonstration projects on the remote control. The results show the relationship between required information and ship sense, shortage of these factors when RO is operating, additional competence and possible regulatory requirements for RO. The findings support the usefulness of GBGA and pave the way to develop a regulatory framework for RO further.

BackgroundAdvance care planning (ACP) is rare in Japan. There are limited venues by which people can talk about death or terminal care.AimTo determine whether a newly translated Japanese version of the Go Wish card game was effective in identifying values of highest importance in the final stages of life.MethodsSixteen young to middle-aged community-dwelling adults (6 men; 10 women) participated in a group activity introducing a Japanese version (trial version) of the Go Wish card game. A survey assessed participants’ views on terminal care before and after group activity.ResultsWe collected 13 of 16 surveys. Participants’ answers to what is important in their terminal stages were: “To feel that my life is complete,” “To have a doctor who knows me as a whole person,” and “To be free from pain.” Twelve (92%) respondents indicated their values changed after the workshop. After small group discussion, the number of values each individual listed increased. All participants indicated that the card game was effective for ACP. Additionally, participants expressed more willingness to share their core values with others, felt closer to others when sharing values, felt comfortable that their values differed from others, and believed their values became clearer by verbalising and sharing them with others.ConclusionFor Japanese people who are not very good at thinking about their terminal wishes or making decisions on their own, a workshop using the Go Wish cards could be an effective tool for motivating people to consider ACP in the future.

Shipping is an indispensable tool for the sustainable global supply chain, and seafarers play a key role in safe navigation. Maritime autonomous surface ships (MASS) have been expected to reduce marine accidents by human error of the seafarers. On the other hand, MASS may have adverse effects on operators’ mental workload (MWL) and increase safety risks in some cases. This research aims to provide a scheme for identifying the relationship between MWL and MASS in the maritime that can be utilised for rulemaking and technological development. The provided scheme identifies the factors that affect the MWL of operators and sub-elements of MWL through gap analysis. Five factors related to MASS operation were defined, in addition to general factors. The case study was carried out by utilising the scheme on typical cases focusing on the normal navigational situation. The NASA task load index method was used to measure MWL. Ten deck officers with various ranks, including the third officer and captain, participated in the case study. The results suggested that various causes such as conflicted situations, machine–human interfaces, mechanical-style movements of the ship, reliability of MASS, and visibility constraints affect the MWL of operators. It also confirmed the verification of the identification scheme.

Nowadays, digital still cameras are becoming as popular as conventional film cameras. As over 3 mega-pixel cameras become the main stream of digital still cameras, they are accepted from a point of view of pixel numbers. However, from a point of view of "scene toughness," digital still cameras need further improvement. Current digital cameras have difficulties reproducing high-contrast images containing both dark and bright areas, with shadows tending to lose details and whites washing out. In order to improve "scene toughness," we have developed a new concept camera system, which can capture wider dynamic range images. Applying miniaturization technology of CCD device, we developed the new structure CCD, the Super CCD SR. One photodiode of the new type CCD is divided into two parts, and each of the two photodiodes has a different size and a different sensitivity. When it outputs an image by optimally combining the images from a high sensitivity part and a low sensitivity part, it has wider dynamic range, that means the camera equipped with the new CCD has the advantage of getting wider dynamic range photographic images by one device and by one exposure. To make the best use of this CCD device, new technique in signal processing and new automatic camera control are important, then we have developed the automatic system that controls the camera corresponding to the scene variation. In this paper we discuss the concept of the signal processing and the automatic camera control for the camera equipped with the Super CCD SR. In the front-light condition the camera exposure and tone control are operated not to lose highlight details. In backlight containing both dark and bright areas, these are operated to reduce flat shadows of main subjects and washing out of highlights against strong sunlight in the background. The camera we developed is capable of obtaining wider dynamic range images and achieves richer and smoother tonality for better reproduction of fine detail, and gets over the above problem and improves "scene toughness."

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