Pose-relay videometrics based ship deformation measurement system and sea trials

The measurement of ship deformation has been a difficult problem for the global ship building industry and navigation field research. So far, an effective and proven method for measuring 3D position and attitude deformation remains unavailable. This article proposes an innovative pose-relay videometrics measurement system for ship deformation on the basis of primary research and experimental validation. The system offers solutions to the important technical problems such as infrared marker manufacture, high-precision detection and multi-camera synchronization and control. Sea trials were carried out, and reasonable, long-term, and continuous 3D data of position and attitude deformations between a given deck point and the ship reference, and between the ship’s head and the stern were acquired for the first time. The experiments have highlighted the considerable applicability of the proposed method of deformation measurement and long-term monitoring of ships and similar large structures.