ORCA CO-PILOT

The recently launched Orca co-pilot is founded on the premise that traditional marine navigation systems haven’t kept up with the expectations of modern boaters. So says

Orca CEO Jorge Sevillano, who explains the problem as he perceives it thus: “You see a lot of boaters relying on mobile apps to supplement their chart plotter. Shifting attention between multiple screens and systems is troublesome because you end up paying less attention to your surroundings. Boaters deserve a better solution. We’ve set out to deliver that with Orca.”

So what makes Orca different? Well, to begin with, Orca supports cellular internet connectivity. This allows the system to automatically update charts and synchronise routes across devices without using SD cards or other data transfer solutions. Orca is also cloud-powered, which means it processes engine, battery and other boat information in the cloud to give boaters automatic trip logs and insights into such things as fuel consumption and abnormal engine behaviour.

Cellular connectivity also enables weather forecasts to be integrated into the

Orca navigation experience. Unexpected weather changes are presented to the boater ahead of time. The system even works out safe routes to and from your chosen destinations and lets boaters know if they will hit or miss a local rain shower

– a definite bonus for anyone with an open-top boat! And if you’re caught offshore without connectivity, that’s not a problem for Orca as the system is still fully functional thanks to predownloaded data.

Orca is launching two products this year; the Orca

Core and the 10.1” outdoor viewable Orca Display unit. The Orca Core connects to the boat’s equivalent of an OBD (on board diagnostics) port and allows boaters to use their personal tablet and the Orca Display as fully featured navigation displays. Both products are included in the Orca Display Kit, which at the time of writing was being offered at a discounted introductory price.