Mercury to offer SmartCraft to other companies

FOND DU LAC, Wis. – Mercury Marine said yesterday it will actively license its SmartCraft protocol to manufacturers of navigation electronics, gauge systems and other electronic vessel systems who wish to produce SmartCraft Networked products compatible with Mercury and Cummins MerCruiser Diesel engines.

The licensing of Mercury’s SmartCraft protocol is aimed at expanding Mercury’s SmartCraft integration system, a company press release said.

“We are excited to introduce our boatbuilder partners to additional third-party accessory suppliers who can help them build unique and exciting products for today’s Mercury and Cummins MerCruiser powered boats,” said Phil Gaynor, director of Mercury Marine’s SmartCraft program. “Since starting SmartCraft in 1999, we have learned that the success of an integration system lies in the breadth of products available, the integrity of the system design and the comprehensiveness of the system’s testing.

“To ensure that we don’t jeopardize the SmartCraft system integrity, each new SmartCraft license partner will work directly with Brunswick’s software company, MotoTron, for product certification and ‘logo validation.’”

MotoTron, part of Brunswick New Technologies, is Brunswick’s engine-control and network-development software company that will provide partner companies with the engineering services necessary to help partners become fully SmartCraft compatible, according to the release.

“MotoTron engineers will be available to SmartCraft protocol partners to certify new product designs and new product functionality before products are offered to customers,” Gaynor said. “Once products are released, customers can be certain that all products on the SmartCraft bus will truly ‘plug and play’ with each other.”

Gaynor said the end result of adding new players to the SmartCraft system will be the creation of more “boater friendly” features that continue to make boating more enjoyable and more hassle-free.

“We will continue to push hard into new technologies that help our customers and data partners differentiate themselves among their competition, while enhancing their quality and profitability,” said Jeff Ehlers, president of MotoTron. “We believe SmartCraft is this type of technology.”

SmartCraft is an integrated electronics technology that uses a “CAN” bus data communication technology. Mercury Marine developed the 555 CAN based engine controller, which it uses as the systems core to generate digital engine and vessel information from numerous points around a craft.

Mercury Marine initially released SmartCraft products for its OptiMax outboards in 1999. Since then, Mercury has added SmartCraft to most of its electronically fuel-injected Mercury outboard engines, Mercury MerCruiser MPI inboards and sterndrive engines, select Mercury Racing engines and Cummins MerCruiser Diesel engines. Mercury also recently added the SmartCraft Digital Throttle and Shift system to its family of products.

• For more of the latest news, click here.