'TimeZero Touch' a chart plotter winner with 'pinch and zoom'

by BW Media on 24 Oct 2012 The technology just gets better and better. Furuno TimeZero Touch has just won the 'Product of the Year' from The British Marine Electronics Association (BMEA) Conference 2012, which took place last week in Southampton.

Furuno’s TimeZero Touch multi-function display, with the 'pinch and zoom' feature familiar to iPhone and iPad users, is the most advanced chart plotter, radar and weather station currently available.

The Display features integration with iOS devices such as the iPad which can take full control of the TimeZero Touch unit and iPhone which can repeat data which is available on the network wirelessly.

Utilising this wi-fi link weather files can be downloaded free of charge and re-played directly on top of the charts so passage planning is easier than ever before.

The world's largest and most respected chip manufacturer, Intel, was involved in the development of the technology, aimed at giving the units the processing power to deliver top performance in all conditions.

After the win, Daniel Conway of Furuno UK Ltd was asked why he believed the company won the award, which was voted on by the public.
He said, ‘We believe customers saw the truly innovative nature of TimeZero Touch, adding the ‘must have’ features to elevate us above the raft of copy-cat products to deliver something truly special. After having some hands-on time at the boat show, customers are amazed at how many features the units have and how easy they are to operate’.


What you can do with TimeZero Touch:
The technology delivers chart upgraded processing, seamless chart handling, zooming and panning without the screen disappearing. It has the effect of smoothing out your chart handling actions. You can scroll, pan, zoom in/out with a smooth, fast and seamless graphics engine.

Navigating in a fully 3D environment offers you a true perspective and wider area of view around the ship, which allows you to better plan your routes, while TimeZero technology updates the information on your screen with virtually no redraw.

Instead of limiting you to a small handful of chart scales to choose from like traditional chart plotters, TimeZero™ architecture allows you to seamlessly zoom in or out to the exact magnification level you like without steps or limitations.