All Higman, boats are adequately outfitted with marine radar systems. The primary units found on most of our vessels are the Furuno FAR 2127's or the Furuno NavNet 1964's.  These are called black box radars because the processor unit located underneath the wheelhouse is separate from the monitor and keyboard found in the wheelhouse.

Though you may consider yourself qualified and competent to operate a radar, are you tuned in to the fine points of these units?

Radar basics:

All Wheelmen know that the basic principle behind radar is simple -- extremely short bursts of microwave energy traveling at the speed of light are transmitted, reflected off a target and then return as an echo.  The processor can then calculate the distance a target is away from the vessel using the time differential between the pulse transmission and the echo return to the scanner.  The direction from which the echo returns is determined by the position of the rotating scanner.

You will hear the term "x" band and "s" band radars.  All Higman radars are "x" band which corresponds to the microwave frequency transmitted from the scanner.  "X" band, because of its higher frequency, provides better resolution and crisper images than "s" band and is less affected by rain and fog.

Steersman Martinez Crenshaw makes adjustments on the 1964, M/V TRINITY BAY

Get it started: 

Marine radars use a device called a magnetron to produce and direct microwave energy.  When the power is initially turned on the magnetron requires a short warm-up time to get a cathode tube hot enough to start committing a stream of electrons.  Three minutes "STBY" is required for Furuno radars to warm up.  If you accidentally turn off your radar, you must restart within 10 seconds to bypass the time delay.

Once the three minute warm-up is complete, the radar can be taken off STBY.  The scanner then starts transmitting the microwave pulses and receiving their reflected echoes. The scanners rotate at a constant speed of 24 rpm.  No crewmember should be on top of the wheelhouse when the scanner is turning! A rotating scanner is dangerous if you take a hit.  Also because the scanner unit emits high frequency radio pulses, being in close proximity can be harmful, particularly to your eyes. Never look directly into the scanner unit when the radar is in operation.

Tuned Up:

Three basic controls are most frequently used in day-to-day operation of these radars.

Gain: This control adjusts receiver sensitivity. Adjust the gain to increase sensitivity and display echoes.  Think of it like the volume of your radio: too high, details are on top of one another; too low, small details may not show up. For long range, adjust the control so background noise is just visible on the display. For short range, some radar operators set this control relatively high and adjust sensitivity using the A/C SEA control.  Adjusting the gain is an art and should be frequently checked.

A/C Sea: This control is designed to suppress reflections from waves near your vessel.  In an inland operation, we do not deal with heavy seas, but this can dampen strong returns from the shoreline, buildings, etc.  Adjust this control to reduce the clutter, but still keep the targets.  Set too high, both shore clutter and your targets will disappear from the display.

A/C Rain: Suppresses the reflected echoes from rain, hail and snow to clear the display. On the X band radar, because of its short pulse length, the echoes from legitimate contacts can become lost in the echoes from precipitation, called rain clutter. When rain clutter masks the display, adjust this control to break up the clutter and distinguish echoes. Adjust the control so that the clutter just disappears; too much A/C Rain action may shrink or erase the echoes from legitimate targets.  On a clear day, it is normally set to zero.

On the Furuno 2127, both the manual tuning and the auto tuning modes reportedly work well.  On the Furuno 1964, most boats find the manual tuning mode works the best.

Other adjustments:

There are other adjustments on these radars that can be manually adjusted or automatically adjusted based on your preference.  Experiment with these settings to get the best picture on your screen.  Be aware that some settings can obscure weak targets so you must evaluate each change made.

Interference Rejection (IR):  This control reduces or eliminates interference received from another boat's radar.  Its on-screen appearance looks like many bright dots either scattered at random or in the form of dotted lines extending from the center to the edge of the display. Interference effects are in-distinguishable from normal echoes because they do not appear in the same place on successive rotations of the scanner.

2127: Left click "IR" on the upper left side of the screen to select a level. "3" is the highest degree of reduction.

1964: Press the HIDE/SHOW key, then press the SIGNAL PROC.  Select "A" I REJ.  Continue to push "A" to select "Off," "Low," "Med" or "High".

Echo Stretch (ES): This function"'stretches" small echoes to make them easier to see. It stretches not only small echoes, but also the returns from sea and rain clutter and radar interference. For this reason, make sure clutter and interference are sufficiently suppressed before using echo stretch.

2127: Left click "ES" on the upper left side of the screen to select level 1, 2 or 3, with 3 being the highest level of stretch.

1964: Press the HIDE/SHOW key, then press the SIGNAL PROC.  Select "D" E STR.  Continue to push "D" to select "Off," "Low" or "High."

Echo Averaging (EA): The echo averaging feature effectively suppresses sea clutter. Echoes received from stable targets such as barges appear on the screen at almost the same position during every rotation of the antenna. On the other hand, unstable echoes such as sea clutter appear at random positions.

2127: Left click "EAV" on the upper left side of the screen to select level 1, 2 or 3, with 3 being the highest level of removing clutter.  On inland ops, "Off" may be your best setting.

1964: Press the HIDE/SHOW key, then press the SIGNAL PROC.  Select "B" E AVG.  Continue to push "B" to select "Off," "Low," "Med" or "High."  "Off" may be the best setting for your operation.

Pre-selected adjustments.....The 2127 radar has a series of pre-selected adjustments based on the conditions or type of surroundings.  The "Picture Select" menu can be found on the upper left hand side of the picture, five boxes down.  Right click the mouse with the cursor on the box, and then left click to scroll through a series of choices.  

The choices change the above discussed settings based on the type of surroundings.  They are: Harbor, Coast, Picture 1,2,3,4, Near, Far, Near Buoy, Far Buoy, Rough Sea and Ship.  If you scroll through theses settings you will find a radar picture that looks the best.  On the demonstrator radar at the office, the "Harbor" picture looks the best.

Optimizing:

On the 1st Monday of every other month the boats with the 1964 radars get a email from the office to "Optimize" the radar.  Optimizing the radar automatically adjusts the video and tuning.  Follow the directions from the email, and the radar picture should improve.

All vessel employees must notify the Afloat Personnel Logistics Coordinator when they are taking prescription medication.

Over 6000 CBT certificates have been issued this year. The 6000th Certificate Award goes to Steven Keenwright on the M/V Matagorda. The lucky winner can get his $150 Walmart Gift Certificate from the Training Department.

Article written by Jack Ratley, Pilot on M/V Miss Marianne

 Silly question...Unless you think about it.

I'm not talking about your personal property, or even that of the Company's, but something less tangible, and equally important -- pride in your job.

Everyone likes to be acknowledged for their efforts, and in a perfect world we would receive acknowledgement. But, that's not where we live. You can make a difference in how a person not only feels about their job, but how they reflect upon their work by simply empowering them. Tell them "good job" after a routine task. It doesn't matter if you are a Port Captain, Boat Captain, Tankerman or Office Personnel. Let them know that you noticed!

Maybe there is someone who is better at performing a certain task than another. Why not empower them by having them teach the other person? Then they not only both take pride in their work, but become a better team. Maybe you have someone you work with who has gone above and beyond. Instead of waiting for the next evaluation period, give them a verbal "pat on the back," and while you're at it, why not pick up the phone and tell someone they are doing a good job?

Simply put, someone who takes pride in their job is an asset to everyone!

Well, the holidays will be upon us shortly and that means family gatherings, office parties, and celebrations of some sort almost daily. That also means food and more food, and for many of us a little overeating; okay, a lot of overeating. Instead of another healthy recipe, we are going to discuss portion sizes. In the age of super sizing it is all too easy to misjudge portion sizes. Below is a guideline to help you figure out how many servings are on your plate. 

 Remember this is just a portion guideline, the calories and fat in these portions are determined by what you put on or in your food. How many of us really eat healthy portions of food?

Basic Guidelines:

1 cup = baseball

1/2 cup = light bulb

1 ounce (oz.) = golf ball

1 tablespoon (tbsp.) = poker chip

3 oz. chicken/meat = deck of cards

3 oz. fish = checkbook.

 Grains:

1 cup of cereal = baseball

1 pancake = compact disc

1 slice of bread =cassette tape (good luck if you can find one of those)

1/2 cup cooked Rice = light bulb

Dairy and Cheese:

1 1/2 oz. of cheese = 3 stacked dice

1/2 cup ice cream = light bulb

Fats and Oils:

1 tbsp. of butter or oil = poker chip

1 tbsp. of salad dressing = poker chip

1 tbsp. of mayonnaise = poker chip

Fruits and Vegetables:

1 apple or orange = baseball

1/2 cup grapes = 16 grapes

1 cup salad greens = baseball

1 baked potato = computer mouse (can I get that loaded please)

Let's see, I will have a checkbook with a side of baseball, topped with a poker chip. Yummy. 

When displayed under a single-span fixed bridge, red lights indicate _____________________.

A: the channel boundaries
B: that vessels must stop
C: the bridge is about to open
D: that traffic is approaching from the other side

You are approaching a swing bridge at night. You will know that the bridge is open for river traffic when __________.

A: the fixed, green light starts to flash
B: the amber light changes to green
C: the red light is extinguished
D: the red light changes to green

The white lights in a vertical line on a multiple-span bridge indicate _________________.

A: the main channel
B: the draw span is inoperable
C: the river is obstructed under that span
D: scaffolding under the span is reducing the vertical

Which light combination does NOT indicate a navigational channel passing under a fixed bridge?

A: Red lights on the LDB and green lights on the RDB
B: Three white lights in a vertical line
C: Two green lights in a range under the span
D: A fixed red light on each pier at the channel edge

You are approaching a vertical lift bridge. You know the span is fully open when _______________.

A: three white lights in a vertical line are lit
B: a red light starts to flash at about 60 times a minute
C: a yellow light is illuminated on the bridge pier
D: there is a range of green lights under the lift span

It's not too early to sign-up for next year's seminar. See the end of the Newsletter for the dates. We would like your input on what  topics you would like to see discussed in the seminar. We are also looking for those who might be interested in participating as a presenter for the various topics covered. We hope to hear from you soon and look forward to your participation.

Port Captain David Devall teaching at 2014 Wheelman's Seminar

© 2014 HIGMAN MARINE SERVICES, Inc.