ENGN1000 Project Proposal
ProposalPresentation.pptx
Radio Controlled Wing Sailed Catamaran
Nikolas Osvalds
Executive Summary
The cutting edge of exciting technologies and trends in high performance sailing are moving from traditional soft sails toward hard wing designs. The wing sail however is not easily accessible to the average sailing enthusiast due to costs and lack of available plans. Being both a fan of engineering and sailing I want a chance to experience wing sailing myself and help others do the same. Therefore I am proposing to design a radio controlled hard wing sailed catamaran where the process and plans are readily available to anyone who wants to try out wing sailing. Throughout the design and manufacture of the hard wing I will take measures to make sure it is accessible to the average sailor (with some fabricating skill). I will start with a cheap RC catamaran and design the wing to power it. Second I will make sure that it is reasonably affordable, easy to build, and that the materials I utilize are readily available. Finally I will consider the ease of controlling the boat and its performance on the water. Using these criteria I hope to bring a hands on view and understanding of this new and exciting sailing technology to more people around the world.
Statement of Problem
In the world of sail boat racing a majority of the sail set ups are all the same sloop rig configuration with a main sail held up by the mast and boom, a jib sail flown off the forestay in front of the mast, and large spinnakers for downwind sailing. The America’s cup is one of the oldest sporting challenges in history and represents the cutting edge of technology of the sport. Hundreds of millions of dollars every couple of years is poured into designing and building large, complex, and fast boats. In the latest edition of the America’s Cup, the 33rd running, the American team of BMW Oracle racing easily won back the cup with an amazing 90ft Trimaran (three hulled boat) powered by a massive hard wing sail that could obtain speeds up to twice the true wind speed. The next edition of the cup is set to feature smaller AC45 (45ft) hard wing sailed boats for preliminary racing, and then larger A75 hard wing sailed boats for the big show.
OracleRacing
Recap of the Design + Build for the 33rd Cup
Video of BMW Oracles boat sailing before cup
Video of New AC45
Fixed wing sailing represents the future of the sport however it is currently rather inaccessible to the everyday sailor. There are few one design classes that utilize the wing the most notable being the C-class catamaran. However, these boats cost in the 10’s of thousands of dollars, and most are designed and built by the sailors themselves. Then again all classes of sailing are rather expensive. The 4.2m two-person dinghies’ we use in college are around $8500 new.
Club 420 Sailboat
Being passionate about sailing and engineering I want a way to experience what wing sailing is all about and I’m sure many other sailors do too. So I thought that a much more accessible form of sailing would be Radio Controlled sailing. The small scale and cheap electronics make the least expensive kits available for around $100. However after searching the Internet extensively there is no commercially available radio controlled hard wing sailboat. Looking further there aren’t even any basic plans anywhere to be found. I think this is a problem for the accessibility of the sport as a whole. For people to get excited and understand more about hard wing sailing they need to be able to experience it themselves. This is the problem I will attempt to solve in my ENGN 1000 project.
Victor Wildcat RC Catamaran
Design Objectives
I propose to buy an existing radio controlled catamaran sailboat for which I will design, build and optimize a hard wing sail. Some of the objectives I wish to meet are listed below.
- Build working wing for existing catamaran
o Optimized for specific boat
o Easy to control, user friendly
o Durable
- Make the plans accessible to other interested in rigid wing sails
o Should be relatively easy to build
§ Non-exotic materials, electronics and assembly techniques
o Should be reasonably cheap
- Performance Specifications
o Faster than traditional sails
o Be able to maneuver around a course
Proposed Engineering Content
Engineering theory will govern a lot of the initial design of the shape and size of the wing. It will be important for me to understand how the aerodynamic concepts of lift and drag affect its design. There will also fluids mechanics theory involved in sizing the wing so that the boat is stable and won’t tip over or pitch pole (bow digs in forward and flips over).
Engineering technology will be involved in the physical control of the boat. All the moving parts will be controlled using existing engineering technologies like RC transmitters, receivers, and servos.
Engineering design will be involved with optimizing the wing through iterations to make it work the best with the boat. It will also be important in controlling costs and making sure the building techniques and materials are “accessible”.
Engineering Theory Content: 40%
Engineering Technology Content: 20%
Engineering Design Content: 40 %
Total: 100%
Team Qualifications
I’m a Senior Mechanical Engineering Concentrator and an active member of the Brown University Sailing Team. I want to combine my passions of engineering and sailing into a career in racing sailboat design. I would also love to sail or race around the world some day. My other hobbies include photography, biking and tinkering with anything.
References
See links above
Résumé
Nikolas J. Osvalds
nosvalds@gmail.com | Mobile: (434) 981-6807
School Address: 113 Keene Street Providence, RI 02906
Permanent Address: 1625 Sagewood Drive Charlottesville, VA 22902
EDUCATION
Brown University, Sc.B Mechanical Engineering Providence, RI | May 2011
o Significant Coursework: Engineering Mechanics, Fluid Dynamics, Mechanics of Solids, Computer Aided Visualization and Design, Groups in Organizations, Principles of Economics
o Member Tau Beta Pi Engineering Honor Society (Top 1/5 of Senior Class)
Monticello High School, 4.0 GPA Charlottesville, VA | June 2007
o Significant Awards: Monticello Scholars (Math, Science, and Engineering), College Board AP Scholar, Math and Science Award
WORK EXPERIENCE
Brown Engineering Department, Lab Monitor Providence, RI | Feb 2011-Present
o Assisted students with use of programs (Pro Engineer, MATLAB, Abaqus FEA, Microsoft Office)
o Maintained printers and helped with student account issues
Stone Horse Yacht Club, 420 Race Team Coach Harwich Port, MA | Summer 2009 & 2010
o Coordinated on the water drills and activities to teach dinghy sailing skills to children aged 8-17
o Developed weekly lesson plans for off the water class time, maintained sail boats
o Oversaw logistics and provided coaching for Club 420 race team
o Ensured boats and team members got to events and performed to the best of their ability
Ware River Yacht Club, Junior Sailing Instructor Ware Neck, VA | Summer 2005-2008
o Coordinated on the water drills and activities to teach dinghy sailing skills to children aged 8-17
o Developed weekly lesson plans for off the water class time, Maintained boats and facilities
LEADERSHIP & TEAM EXPERIENCE
Brown Sailing Team, Active Member Providence, RI | Fall 2007- Present
o Practiced four days a week, participated in regattas every weekend Fall/Spring Seasons
o Sailed in two national championships as member of the sloop team
o Vice Commodore 2009-2010, Maintained sailing fleet and coach boats
o Coaches Award for Dedication and Commitment, 2009-2010 season
Tau Beta Pi Engineering Honor Society, Member Providence, RI | Fall 2010- Present
o Provided help and advice during study hours for engineering students in the core curriculum
COMPETENCIES & INTERESTS
Computer Skills
o Pro Engineer, AutoCAD, Abaquas FEA, MATLAB, Maple, Microsoft Office, Photoshop
Personal Interests
o Sailing (Racing), Road Cycling, Photography, Snowboarding, Sail Boat Design
Comments (0)
You don't have permission to comment on this page.