learn to sail uni project

[bowmanjono 0]

Hi, I'm a Massey University student in my final year. I'm studing industrial design and for my major project I'm designing a product to help build confidence in learn to sail students. I'm not sure what it is going to be yet and I was wondering if anyone has got any ideas that could get me started.

 

Some ideas I have already are:

sailing simulator - put an existing boat on a device that rocks and rotates to help the user get accoustomed to the movements of a sailing boat

 

land yacht - steered with a tiller to get the user more familiar with how to steer a boat whilst being on land in a familiar environment

 

Any discussion on the above ideas or new ideas would be much appreciated

[PaulR 3]

I've often thought that the Maritime Museum, whilst interesting for me, had nothing for the "bored teenagers" to do. I liked the ships bridge, but the radar etc was not working from memory. I must admit it was a few years ago and I'm overdue to revisit.

 

So setting up different types of winches, (showing developments Murray, Lewmar, Harken etc in sheet winches, self tailers through to coffee grinders and multiple linked winches) using different purchases, and have time trials to set a fastest time or beat various "named" sailors would be a good way to burn off that surplus teenage energy.

 

Likewise:

A series of different sized and different brands of manual bilge pumps to use

 

A heeling machine for keelers so you can step into the cockpit and get the sensation.

 

Discovering the ways a "marine toilet" works, water flows pumps etc

 

Other not sailing but interesting:

A cargo net to climb over

 

A working set of derricks to lift a load from a ship's hold and swing over and lower onto the wharf.

 

Hope that helps

[bowmanjono 0]

Thanks for your comments.

 

I have decided to develop the sailing simulator. It heels over when the wind hits the sail and the user has to ease the mainsheet and/or hike out to keep the 'boat' upright. It turns from side to side when the tiller is turned.

 

Here are some renderings of my design at the moment

 

Thanks

 

Any comments/suggestions for improvement would be much appreciated

[Guest]

brilliant, to build confidence they need to enjoy it, this maybe the trick, Hope it works out. I think you are on the right track

[wal 27]

Don't forget the bucket/s of water to be hurled over the hapless student?

 

Good plan tho' - could get quite creative with the input

[Guest]

Would this simulator be a reactive one, ie would there be a wind source that can move it's origin and intensity so the student can also learn trimming sails and reading the woolies etc. If it's only confidence that needs building then just turn the wind off. Would be easy enough to do, just get a big fan and put it on a circular track.

 

Dan

[Guest]

You need to attach a simulated "speed" indicator to it, so that the force that they are generating by trimming the sail correctly for point of sail and hiking have some meaningful output.

Otherwise the mechanics of the machine have no connection to real sailing other than it has a sail and leans over.

[Guest]

Link the tiller to a forcefeedback joystick arrangement, slap a 52inch screen on the front and link the heeling/pitching to the back end of Virtual Skipper 4 or 5 and it could be even cooler.

 

All the wind angle/sea state and heel etc data is already in the programme for a variety of designs from opti to TP52/AC and Melges 24. As are courses , competitors that dont mind if you hit them, variable weather etc. etc. etc.

 

Nice bit of kit - just a thought.

[wal 27]

Fore n aft motion for upwind and down? Match that to your 52" screen and we've got 'er going , by golly

[Guest]

Yep - both ways - any way actually. Its from the telemetry data from the real boats combined with hull calcs and actual polars. The data is in there for the display - very similar to F1/Flight simulators etc.

 

Probably need to put a perspex screen on it to prevent rum spillage on the 52 inch LCD (3D available now too if you want to go really crazy)

[Farrari 4]

Tell you what if you wanted to go the extra mile you could connect multiple units together so as you can race each other. Better still you could network them over the Internet so as the participants don't have to be in the same location.

 

A mate of mine had done something similar with indoor rowing machines. See http://www.digitalrowing.com

 

If you are interested I could put you in contact.

[Guest]

We have a, I'd like to say similar but it's no where near as flash, sort of a system we use to teach the newbie primary school kids with on dry land before sending them into the wet stuff for real. Basically a real boat with wheels on the bottom so you can scoot around carparks and so on. It works well if knot a little clunky.

 

It works wonders for confidence and teaching the basic must do's and what happen's when you change the must do's. Without it I doubt we would have anywhere the ease once we get them actually on the water.

 

I like the idea a lot.

 

I would suggest that if you followed some of the wise advice above that it has the ability to turn instruments and non-essentials off though. We have enough people on the harbour who can't sail without lots of electrical inputs telling them if there is wind and so on. You want to be able to get someone concentrating on pure boat sailing and the why and how it works before giving them tools to be able to ignore what they should really know.

[bowmanjono 0]

Thanks for all your comments.

 

The sailing simulator is focusing on the basic techniques that a sailor has to do when tacking or gybing (the instructor can demonstrate, then the learn to sail student can have a go).

 

The wind will tip the boat over so the user has to react to gusts. It can also be used to teach sail trim (woolies). With using the wind, when the simulator tacks, the boat turns. This is more like the real thing rather than images going around on a screen with the boat in one place.

 

I haven't gone down the instrument track because I wanted to keep it as simple as possible for the learn to sail student. But it could be incorporated into a 'racing' version on the internet.

 

The idea is that it can be bought or hired by yacht clubs and used for learn to sail.

 

The next step I have to do is make it easy to assemble/transportable.

 

Any ideas of how I could make this happen. . .

[Guest]

Hi Bowman

 

I wasnt talking about a static cockpit. More along the lines of use the handling characteristic data built into the games to actuate your 'hull' via airbags/rams/hydraulics. Same as a flight simulator. Put the prototype down the viaduct like the flight sim at the airport. Perfect for those that dont want to get wet. It also has pretty hi-res visuals built into the scenario and VSK has matchracing/weather/traffic scenarios you can build or just short course dingy stuff All built in.

 

Hey - you have to build this thing to a budget but it would be a pretty neat little simulator

 

Still better to be sailing...Looks good, good luck.

 

E

[PaulR 3]

Thanks for all your comments.

 

The sailing simulator is focusing on the basic techniques that a sailor has to do when tacking or gybing (the instructor can demonstrate, then the learn to sail student can have a go) . . .

 

Add a Head sail

 

Add a Spinnaker

 

Initially both could be a simple pulley system lifting a weight to simulate the basic techniques.

 

 

Add a big yellow ball that moves past the boat like a large pendulum to have the "mark rounding" techniques

 

 

Make a big 3 or 5 crew version for the viaduct as a side show paid ride experience, and earn some rewards for your efforts.

[PaulR 3]

The next step I have to do is make it easy to assemble/transportable.

 

Any ideas of how I could make this happen. . .

 

Have it so it could sit on a standard 6 x 4 trailer

 

ADD wheels but you will also need wind up/down legs, like a caravan or truck with a lifting crane. Then when moving, legs up to alluw wells to reach the ground, then just pull out a tow bar extension and hitch to a car, and you're away.

 

Larger version could sit on a caravan chassis.

[PaulR 3]

Larger version could offer wheel steering.

 

Trust that is knot an invite to that "SOUNDS" and light main from the mainland.

 

Have a party, hit up Squid for some rum, and we will all come and test it for you.

 

 

SQUID: Time for a party is it knot

[SloopJohnB 322]

Why not just make a trailer sailer/sportboat and have all the bases covered.

[ScottiE 174]

or remove it from the base, attach a couple of fairings that look remarkably like a stern and bow and 'float' it in some water-like substance (like perhaps seawater)!

 

Seriously though it looks good - like many on this board who sailed most of our lives its hard to imagine why you wouldn't just get out on the water on a calmish day and slowly build up wind strength as confidence grows. But I guess as long as your focus groups have indicated that there is a need then do it!

[AJ Oliver 154]

The gizmo will have to be configured so that the student can cross from one side to another as they tack (and jibe). Doesn't look like there's room for that as is. You could just raise the boom, but that has its own drawbacks. The Lake Erie Marine Trades Association has a roughly similar simulator-contraption. I can get you info on it if you like.

La Lucha Sigue, AJ Oliver

Sandusky (Ohio) Sailing Club