Talbot! One for you.

[Solitaire]

This interesting cat was in Victoria Marina this morning. Intersting beast! /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif

 

[graham]

That should keep the batteries topped up /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[boatbuilder]

Built at Multihull centre Millbrook Cornwall about 4 years ago

 

[boatbuilder]

If memory is correct

 

[MacW]

....now permanently berthed in the marina.and connected to shorepower....will provide renewable energy for 1645 homes
in the immediate area.......

!! /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

 

[alastair]

I saw it in Queen Elizabeth marina (Guernsey) a few years ago, and spoke to the owner/designer. The air blades drive a prop through some gears, and for the for the first time, a raggie can head straight into the wind without using his engine.

I have enough problem dodging the boom on sail boats - I cant remember if there is enough headroom to avoid this, or do the crew wear hard hats /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[Talbot]

would not appeal greatly! I wonder what efect the gyroscopic action of the wind prop turning has on boat handling, and I would worry enormously about close quarters handling!

As a one-off, you have to presume that the calculations have ben done on providing the strength and rigidity to support that wind prop, but that was also supposed to be true for the Wing sail trimaran , and that eventualy fell apart.

 

[Norman_E]

It give a whole new meaning to the word "Saildrive"

 

[graham]

Re: How does it perform?

does anyone know how well it performs? It must be a noisy beast in a breeze if the noise from small wind generators are anything to go by.

 

[Sybarite]

How do you reef it?

John

 

[jrt]

Take one of the blades off? /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

 

[Danny_Labrador]

Change the pitch

 

[AlienP2]

Can't get my head round this. Can it really sail in to the wind?

Wind turns big prop, big prop turns little prop, little prop pushes water backwards, boat moves forwards, apparant wind increases.....

I suspect that the law of diminishing returns means it can't.

I've stood and looked at this thing in Guernsey a few times over the last two years. Never seen it move though.

 

[jamesjermain]

There was a discussion about this on the board a while ago. I fell into the camp of those who don't believe it. If the air prop provides enough drive to the water prop to push the boat against the wind, overcoming wind resistance, water resistance, friction in the system and other losses through inefficiency, then they must have discovered perpetual motion.

Imagine a flat calm day. Push the boat forward; apparent wind created; air prop drives water prop pushes boat forward; more apparent wind created; boat goes faster; more apparent wind... Before you know it the boat is doing 10 knots in a flat calm - can't be done.

 

[Solitaire]

[ QUOTE ]
I saw it in Queen Elizabeth marina (Guernsey)

[/ QUOTE ]

Opps, my mistake. It was QE marina not Victoria. We actually spent some time looking for Powerskipper's dad's boat and went to all of them!! /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

 

[AngusMcDoon]

I doubt that boat could sail directly into the wind, but apparently it has been done on a smaller scale, for example here. That site used to have a video showing it happening, which was quite convincing, but I can't find it there now.

 

[Sgeir]

Looks like an upmarket cat version of the monohull at the Scottish Maritime Museum in Irvine:

"More unusual vessels include the Falcon a yacht with a windmill that drives a turbine, which in turn propels the vessel. This was part of a wind power project run by the University of Glasgow in the 1980s and the system, uniquely for a wind-powered vessel, allows the Falcon to sail directly into the wind."

 

[ex-Gladys]

There was a Prout on the Blackwater a few years ago sporting this type of rig. Used to seem to go well....