As a method to reduce collision accidents of ships at sea, this paper suggests an expert system for collision avoidance and navigation (hereafter "ESCAN"). The ESCAN is designed and developed by using the theory and technology of expert system and based on the information provided by AIS and RADAR/ARPA system. In this paper the ESCAN is composed of four(4) components; Facts/Data Base in charge of preserving data from navigational equipment, Knowledge Base storing production rules of the ESCAN, Inference Engine deciding which rules are satisfied by facts or objects, User System Interface for communication between users and ESCAN. The ESCAN has the function of real--time analysis and judgment of various encountering situations between own ship and targets, and is to provide navigators with appropriate plans of collision avoidance and additional advice and recommendation This paper, as a basic study, is to introduce the basic design and function of ESCAN.

Evaluation of collision risk plays a key role in developing the expert system of navigation and collision avoidance. This paper presents a new collision risk model formula that is one modification model on the basis of one approach to the evaluation of collision risk using sech function produced in earlier studies. And as a tool of the evaluation field of ship collision, this paper applied the new model in appraising the collision risk and represented how to decide the safe range of own ship's action. Moreover this paper also analyzed theoretically how to determine the coefficients as described in the new modification model, and suggested the appropriate values as applicable.