2013results about "Watercraft hull design" patented technology

Disclosed herein is an article that includes a first plurality of spaced features. The spaced features are arranged in a plurality of groupings; the groupings of features include repeat units; the spaced features within a grouping are spaced apart at an average distance of about 1 nanometer to about 500 micrometers; each feature having a surface that is substantially parallel to a surface on a neighboring feature; each feature being separated from its neighboring feature; the groupings of features being arranged with respect to one another so as to define a tortuous pathway. The plurality of spaced features provide the article with an engineered roughness index of about 5 to about 20.

The subject invention is a wake enhancement assembly to vary a configuration of a wake produced by the hull of a boat. The assembly preferably includes three or four fluid chambers adapted to be disposed within the hull of the boat. The fluid chambers can be filled to provide added weight in selected areas of the hull. The added weight alters how the hull rides within a body of water and as such will alter the wake of the boat. A plurality of hoses are mounted to and in fluid communication with the fluid chambers for selectively filling and draining the fluid chambers. The assembly is characterized by a manifold having an inlet and a plurality of outlets. Each of the outlets has a valve disposed in fluid communication therewith. The filling hoses are connected to the outlets such that the valves of the manifold control a flow of fluid to and from the fluid chambers independently of each other. The valves and manifold electronically and remotely control the selective filling and draining of the fluid chambers.

A trim tab control system adapted to adjust trim tabs to optimize the velocity of a water vessel. The trim tab control system is adapted to have a tilt sensor and a velocity sensor in communication with the microcontroller where the microcontroller records the position of the trim tabs based on trim tab adjustments that the trim tab control system initiates, as well as trim tab adjustments initiated by the helmsman of the water vessel.

The invention relates to an arrangement and a method for dynamic control of the movements and course of a high-speed vessel hull (100). The arrangement (101) comprises propulsion members (102, 102') and at least one flap member (104, 104', 104'', 104'''). In this connection, the flap member is arranged so as to be capable of being brought adjustably at an angle (105) in relation to a water flow (106) relative to an aft side surface (107) of the vessel hull (100) in order in this connection to generate force components (108, 109) which act on said vessel hull (100) and on a front side (110) of the flap member (104), the flap member (104) being arranged so that the force components (108, 109) generated are directed on the one hand towards the aft side surface (107) of the vessel hull and on the other hand towards the front side (110) of the flap member (104) in the water flow (106) relative to the aft side surface (107) so as in this way to be capable of bringing about a change in the movements and/or course of the vessel hull (100). The invention is particular intended for manoeuvring vessel hulls of high-speed vessels of the type which are provided with water-jet drive, that is to say vessels with a water-free stem while in motion, but can also be applied to other types of high-speed vessels.

The technical disclosure herein describes an autonomous water-borne vehicle having a segmented non-planing hull with free flood fore and aft sections and a sealed center section. The disclosure also described such a vehicle having a fixed longitudinal thruster and a fixed lateral thruster for changing the heading of the vehicle. The disclosure also described such a vehicle having an autonomous mission system, an autonomous navigation system, and a web-based command and control system. The disclosure also describes such a vehicle having a submersible winch. The disclosure also describes such a vehicle wherein the sealed center section is of substantially rectangular cross section. The disclosure also describes such a vehicle having a wheeled battery tray.

A dynamic coating includes at least one polymeric layer for attachment to a surface. The polymeric layer includes at least one electrically conducting polymer including layer, wherein under influence of a dynamic signal applied to the polymeric layer, a contact angle of the polymeric layer dynamically and substantially increases or decreases upon oxidation or reduction of the polymer. The polymeric layer can also expand or contract upon oxidation or reduction. The coating can be used for a variety of applications including a non-toxic biofouling preventative system and for forming low voltage electrowetting pumps.

An article has a surface topography for resisting bioadhesion of organisms and includes a base article having a surface. A composition of the surface includes a polymer. The surface has a topography comprising a pattern defined by a plurality of spaced apart features attached to or projected into the base article. The plurality of features each have at least one microscale dimension and at least one neighboring feature having a substantially different geometry. An average feature spacing between adjacent ones of the features is between 10 μm and 100 μm in at least a portion of the surface. The surface topography can be numerically represented using at least one sinusoidal function. In one embodiment, the surface can comprise a coating layer disposed on the base article.

This invention solves the problem of reducing the fluid friction resistance accompanying relative movement of surfaces of a solid and a liquid. A superhydrophobic coating acting as a substrate for a gaseous lubricant of very low viscosity, reducing the fluid skin friction, has a hierarchic fracal structural of the surface wherein the forms of the first hierarchic level (2, 3, 9) are located at the coating's substrate, and the forms of each successive hierarchic level (22, 33, 99) are located on the surface of the previous hierarchic level and the forms of individual higher hierarchic levels reiterate the forms of the lower hierarchic levels. Forms of at least two hierarchic levels of rows (2, 22) and ridges (3, 33, 99) occur in the coating and, also, the surface has anisotropic geometry, maximally developed fractally in the direction transverse to the direction of flow and maximally smooth in the direction of flow and, also, has channels located in the coating's substrate to ensure gas flow.

An adjustable surf wake system enhances a wake formed by a watercraft travelling through water. The system may include a flap for deflecting water traveling past the stern of the watercraft, and/or a positioner operably connected to the flap for positioning the flap relative to a longitudinal axis of the watercraft between a neutral position and an outward position. Positioning a port flap in its extended position enhances a starboard surf wake, and positioning the starboard flap in its extended position enhances a port surf wake.

A water craft having a bow and a stern including an engine of sufficient thrust to create an enlarged wake at the stern of the boat as the boat moves along the surface of a body of water.

The water tight compartment is positioned to carry water below the water line and essentially astride the centerline or keel of the boat. The compartment is adapted to contain liquid water in an amount sufficient to enhance or equalize the size of the boat wake.

The compartment extends from a point forward of the transom and engine, and extends to a point forward of the midpoint between the bow and the stern, and terminates short of the bow while serving to exert downward force on the bow against the water when the water craft is underway and the compartment carries water.

The invention relates to bionic technical field, and specifically relates to a shark-imitating anti-drag structure and a manufacturing method thereof. The high-fidelity shark-imitating anti-drag structure capable of slowly releasing drag reducer instantly comprises a shark skin-imitating layer, the upper surface of the shark skin-imitating layer is a scutate surface, the lower surface of the shark skin-imitating layer is dug with at least two grooves, the at least two grooves are interconnected with each other, and through holes which interconnects the upper surface with the lower surface areprovided in the grooves; and the shark-imitating anti-drag structure further comprises a slow release electric hydraulic control system. Because the technical solution is used, the high-fidelity shark-imitating anti-drag structure not only possesses a high-fidelity shark-imitating squama groove appearance, but also can imitate instantaneous fluid-secreting system of living shark under high speed maneuvering, for realizing high-efficient coupling drag reduction of squama groove sand self-lubricating mucus.

An unmanned vehicle may include a vehicle body that comprises an enclosed hull. The unmanned vehicle may include a propulsion, a ballast control system, a center of gravity system, a pressurization system, a control surface system, a navigation control system, and an on board master control system. The on board master control system may execute local control over operation of the various systems of the unmanned vehicle. The unmanned vehicle may also include a power supply carried by a portion of the vehicle body to provide power to the various systems. The various systems of the unmanned vehicle may be independently operable to support selective operation of the unmanned vehicle in the air, on the surface of the water, and below the surface of the water.

The invention discloses a system optimization method and device of ship operation energy efficiency. The method comprises the steps of data acquisition, mathematical model establishment, analysis and calculation, output and execution; namely, acquiring speed over water and speed over ground of the ship, real-time rotating speed and instant oil consumption of ship main engine; when the ship is in much deeper water, establishing a mathematical model between the real-time rotating speed of the ship main engine and the ship speed over water and a mathematical model between the real-time rotating speed of the ship main engine and the instant oil consumption of the ship main engine; analyzing and calculating the mathematical models under different water flow velocities and different main engine rotating speeds to obtain the ship kilometer oil consumption valves of the ship corresponding to different conditions; displaying the ship kilometer oil consumption value and the corresponding main engine rotating speed to guide the operation. The method also includes a ship technical state judging and navigation operating optimizing method. The device comprises a central processer and a memory thereof, a data acquisition equipment, man-machine conversation equipment, output equipment, a power supply unit and the like.

A coated surface for resisting or enhancing bioadhesion includes at least one patterned polymer including coating layer having a plurality of features attached to or projected into a base surface. The features each have at least one microscale (<1 mm) dimension and have at least one neighboring feature having a substantially different geometry. The patterned coating layer preferably provides an average roughness factor (R) of from 4 to 50. The coating layer resists or enhances bioadhesion as compared to the base surface.

A short-term planned route from a start position that is a ship position at a first time up to an end position that is the ship position at a second time is designed based on a planned route, an estimated encounter marine phenomenon information, operation performance information measured on a ship, and a hull motion model of the ship, the estimated encounter marine phenomenon information being measured on the ship based on actually encountered marine phenomenon information. The short-term planned route makes a first evaluation function optimal, the first evaluation function containing: an index indicating an influence of a fluctuation portion between a planned position that is a ship position planned at the second time on the planned route and the end position; a fuel consumption index when the ship sails along the short-term planned route; and a safety index when the ship sails along the short-term planned route.

A friction reducing ship reduces frictional resistance between the external hull plate 1 and water W by ejecting air A from the external hull plate 1 into water W to generate micro-bubbles B on the surface of the external hull plate 1. A structural feature of the ship is that micro-bubbles B are generated by creating a negative pressure region in the water W admitted in the water intake opening 2a, disposed below the waterline WL in the bow section 1a, so as to eject atmospheric air above the water into the water to generate micro-bubbles B, and discharging the micro-bubbles B together with water to the water discharge opening 2b provided in the bottom section 1b.

Systems and associated methods for planning and control of a fleet of unmanned vehicles in missions that are coordinated temporally and spatially by geo-location, direction, vehicle orientation, altitude above sea level, and depth below sea level. The unmanned vehicles' transit routes may be fully autonomous, semi-autonomous, or under direct operator control using off board control systems. Means are provided for intervention and transit changes during mission execution. Means are provided to collect, centralize and analyze mission data collected on the set of participating unmanned vehicles.

A wake absorber, wherein an aquatic vehicle with a propulsor mounted on the vehicle and operative to propel the vehicle through a water medium, has a wake absorber mounted on the vehicle aft of the propulsor. The wake absorber includes an artificial muscle surface adapted to be impinged upon by a wake created by the propulsor. The wake absorber further includes electrodes mounted on the artificial muscle surface. Pressure of the wake upon the muscle surface exercises a bending force on the surface, which creates energy that is recovered by the electrodes as electrical power that can be digitized. Energy removed from the muscle surface by the electrodes weakens the wake and renders the wake less pronounced visually and acoustically.