What are the functions of the control system?
The vessel’s control system, or platform management system (PMS), is central to the submarine’s operation. Included in the Distributed Digital Systems (DDiS) program package, the control system supervises and manages installations in the fields of energy, propulsion, diving safety and auxiliary systems. The control system receives information and controls the installations of these systems via the various programmable logic controllers (PLCs) distributed throughout the vessel – around ten on the Scorpène®. “The PMS supports the submarine’s systems by centralising the data it receives and sending information back to the PLCs. It reduces the number of operators on board, while facilitating and optimising the vessel’s operations. Control and surveillance are carried out from a console located in the Control Room (CR). The PMS console in the CR is basically the equivalent of a car’s dashboard, just more complex. The whole system is based on the Shipmaster 3.0 product line”, explains Aurélie.
What is its manufacturing cycle?
During the engineering phase, the PMS System Engineering Leader and their team in Cherbourg analyse customer requirements (number of operators, level of automation, operation locations, etc.) as well as the needs of the System Engineering Leaders of the various installations (information visible to the operator, functions they can control, human-machine interfaces, etc.). This information makes it possible to define the hardware and software architecture of the control system. Once the architecture has been validated, the functional requirements are shared with the Combat Management System (CMS) team at the Angoulême-Ruelle site, which develops the software and designs and produces the equipment. Finally, tests are carried out at the integration platform in Ruelle in the presence of the System Engineering Leader, then on board locally by the front-office team.
What are the specific characteristics of the Scorpène® control system? How can it be adapted to the needs of naval customers?
There are fewer PLCs on the Scorpène®, which is more compact than the Barracuda, with a simple, centralised architecture. The single console in the CR for operating the control system is also specific to the Scorpène®, with two operators at the controls: one for the electrical power plant and propulsion and the other for diving safety. “As the Scorpène® is a product line, the goal is not to reinvent everything for each new naval customer, but to promote reuse, including the management of obsolescence, of course. However certain adaptations such as the replacement of lead-acid batteries by lithium-ion batteries, for example, can be envisaged if expressed when defining specifications”, concludes Aurélie.