The US Navy has approved Northrop Grumman’s new electronic chart display and information system (Navy ECDIS) for deployment.
According to the navy’s Operational Test and Evaluation Force, the Navy ECDIS is “operationally suitable, operationally effective and cyber survivable.”
The software approval follows a year of government tests involving sea trials with the amphibious assault ship USS Kearsarge (LHD 3) and evaluation with the Naval Surface Warfare Center Philadelphia Division.
The system will serve as a core technology for all bridge and navigation platforms in the US Navy fleet, replacing the current Voyage Management System ECDIS software also developed and fielded by Northrop Grumman.
The company will first install the new software on the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71) this month.
In the next three years, 115 ships will receive the system.
“Our agile approach to developing Navy ECDIS enabled software to be developed in sprints, with customer input at every step of the way,” Northrop Grumman Naval and Oceanics Vice President Todd Leavitt said.
“This workflow allowed the Navy to see and evaluate results of their input as they came up and saved them both time and money.”
The Navy ECDIS
The Navy ECDIS processes and projects multiple chart formats, such as digital nautical charts developed by the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency.
It is expected to provide next-generation navigation capabilities to the US Navy, including compliance with the standard for mission interoperability with NATO allies.
The platform is modified with a human-machine interface for ease of operator access, improved situational awareness, and increased navigation safety.
