Within this proposal, the plan is to develop a universal graphical data display based on a new maritime communication standard over Ethernet, which can also interface existing communication networks on ships with limited bridging functionality and which is able to show the information required by the operator.

In the field of maritime technologies, especially on bigger vessels, it is necessary to have any relevant information referring to the movement of the ship (course, heading, rate of turn) at almost every point on the navigation bridge. Therefore, a lot of instruments and displays are placed all over the bridge, mainly showing one piece of information each. Because of this, quite a lot of installation (cables etc.) and space is required.

The new product will allow cascading the multifunction display devices by having an integrated switch chip on the board and allow the display of multiple pieces of information at once. It will be based on the STM32 Microcontroller Platform with a custom designed board and a display in a robust case suitable for maritime installation.

During the project both the hardware and the software will be developed and prototypes will be assembled. These prototypes are then brought through type approval for large ship environments. The aim of the project is to be ready for manufacturing at the end.