- Prototype cabin draws on ABB solutions using KNX technology.
- The prototype provides an automated solution to control cruise ships’ electrical systems for greater comfort, safety, and sustainability.
- The future-proofed system delivers constant, centralized monitoring, and guarantees energy saving through automatic control of electrical loads.
Conit is a leader in engineering systems for the shipping industry. Thanks to the experience gained from installations on more than 100 vessels, it is an expert in the design and construction of electrical and electronic safety systems and the monitoring of integrated electrical systems on ships.
Over the years, cruise ships become real seafaring giants, in some cases with more than five thousand cabins. A cruise ship is like a large traveling hotel and requires a complex plant control system.
Cabins’ modularity and the massive amount of wiring required with traditional solutions inspired the Conit R&D function to design a KNX bus wiring solution with an automated cabin module at its core. Supervision and monitoring are fundamental, so Conit decided to develop a solution based on the KNX protocol, initially developed for the smart management of buildings.
The solution developed by Conit physically and virtually constructed in partnership with ABB, provides a simpler system architecture than conventional wiring, and thanks to the potentials of ABB i-bus® KNX it ensures flexibility for system expansions or updates, as well as constant, centralized monitoring, ensuring it can accommodate a range of future potential requirements.
Since the KNX bus communication protocol is based on an open system, parts, and specialist technical assistance can be sourced anywhere in the world, a fundamental consideration for a cruise ship. Further benefits of this solution are the capability for predictive maintenance to optimize procedures and alarm alerts for precise identification of any malfunctions.
Looking at how the decision to develop this solution originated, Conit purchasing department manager Andrea Galfo explains, “Although vessels have become more and more high-tech, their systems have failed to progress beyond the traditional wiring concept. Cabins are modular elements and are supplied with power as single units, so the amount of wiring is huge. Moreover, system automation is virtually never provided, making cabins less comfortable and efficient. At Conit we’re committed to always offering our customers something innovative, so we’ve entered into a bilateral collaboration agreement with ABB for the promotion of system automation in cruise ship cabins using the ABB i-bus® KNX building automation solutions.”
The automated cabin built, on display at the Conit showroom, reveals that the use of a system based on KNX technology enables the simple activation of functions such as occupancy sensing, automatic courtesy light activation, permanent activation of cabin functions, temperature, and air quality monitoring, lighting control with optimization of artificial and daylight and ventilation, to reduce energy use. All these functions can be supervised with remote operation of cabins’ controls possible, for the highest level of passenger comfort. Together, ABB and Conit have produced a virtual copy of the automated cabin on display at the Conit production plant, with a tool offering a virtual tour of the cabin with details of the ABB solutions used, accessible here.
