| Q | CyScan uses a laser. Are there any health and safety risks associated with this? |
| A | No. CyScan has classification as a Class 1 device indicating zero risk to users of the system. The laser system is designed to be totally safe under all possible conditions including very close proximity. A safety interlock switches the laser off in the event of rotor failure. |
| Q | Why does CyScan have a continuously rotating scanner head? |
| A | This method of operation gives three main advantages over a 'point and lock' system:
1. The rotating scanner collects target reflection data on every rotation allowing position lock to be maintained reliably while ignoring transient or interfering reflections.
2. A rotating scanner allows the use of a multi-target mode of operation offering significant navigation advantages to a DP system.
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| Q | How does CyScan maintain lock on the targets? |
| A | CyScan’s rotating head measures range and bearing to all available targets once per second. Genuine positional changes are tracked as a steady progression while transient reflections are ignored. The vertical beam divergence of 16° copes with most moderate and steady wave motion. Sudden vessel movements and high sea states are automatically compensated for by the levelling platform. |
| Q | How well does CyScan cope with difficult weather conditions? |
| A | The CyScan unit is fully sealed and weatherproof. As would be expected with any optical system, the performance of CyScan can be degraded by fog, snow and rain. The level of performance loss depends on the severity of the conditions. The system is able withstand temperatures within the range -10° to +55ºC. The low-temperature variant of the system can operate in temperatures as low as -25°C. Ice formation is resisted by the continuous rotation of the scanning head. High sea state motion is compensated for by an automatic, gyro controlled levelling system. |
| Q | What types of dynamic positioning system can CyScan connect into? |
| A | An RS485 data interface connects CyScan any type of DP system. The communication protocol type is software selectable from a range of industry standard formats including Simrad, NMEA, ASCII, Nautronix, MDL and Artemis. Custom formats can also be provided on request. The NMEA format contains heading data from multi-target operation. |
| Q | Why does CyScan need an automatic leveller? |
| A | This feature gives automatic compensation for the pitch and roll induced by wave motion. This allows target lock to be maintained even in high sea states. |
| Q | Does the automatic levelling platform require any operator input? |
| A | No. Once activated the levelling function is completely automatic and allows target lock to be maintained even in high sea states. |
| Q | How does CyScan’s automatic levelling platform work? |
| A | The CyScan scanner head incorporates 3 axis solid-state gyros and a tilt sensor. These constantly measure vessel movement due to wave motion and input this data to the control circuit of leveller platform drive motors. |
| Q | Does CyScan need to use special retro-reflective targets? |
| A | No. CyScan will operate effectively with any good quality target including those supplied by other laser scanner manufacturers. GCS offers flat, cylindrical and prism targets to suit most applications. |
| Q | What range can CyScan operate to? |
| A | CyScan’s operational range is dictated by the physical limitations of optical reflection. In the field, this limits the useful range of a laser positioning system to 400m although under perfect or in experimental conditions much longer ranges (1 or 2 km) may be achieved. |
| Q | Can two or more CyScan units operate simultaneously in the same area using the same or different targets? |
| A | Yes. CyScan uses a 1Hz rotating scanner head with a narrow vertical beam and complex signal tracking algorithms. The combination of these features ensures that units cannot interfere with one another even if they are using the same targets. |
| Q | Is CyScan blinded by low sun or bright artificial lights? |
| A | No. CyScan is largely immune to the high contrast conditions sometimes found in offshore environments. The optical design includes narrow band pass optical filters to cut out interfering wavelengths while the sophisticated signal processing system automatically ignores over range signals. Enhanced immunity is assured in multi-target mode. |
| Q | Is CyScan confused by personnel wearing high visibility clothing? |
| A | No. It is able to identify and ignore transient or interfering reflections from non-target objects in the target area while maintaining lock on the authentic targets. |
| Q | Can CyScan cope with the temporary loss of a target reflection? |
| A | Yes. CyScan’s signal processing system operates with a level of reflection redundancy which allows target loss while still maintaining positional awareness, especially when using multiple targets. |
