New ZF pod for single installations

ZF have released a pod drive suitable for engines up to 480 hp for single engine installations. They are also marketing the unit as a joy-stick package with their own bow thruster, which - even though it's electric - has a 10 minute duty cycle.
The pod is able to rotate through 180 degrees (90 degrees port & stbd) giving full joy-stick control.

I've never been a particular fan of pods - preferring the trimming ability and less vulnerable nature of sterndrives. But this will certainly throw a(nother) cat amongst the pigeons...

http://www.boattest.com/engines/Engine-Test.aspx?ID=440024

 

With the right programmer, I suppose this could be used for dynamic positioning. Thanks for sharing.

 

Nice item, yes. They say even 30 minutes for the thruster! Wow that is impressive.

 

Yes - I haven't had a chance to look into how they've manages to achieve it... clever lads over at ZF....

 

Hmm, ja,

Friedrichshafen you know. One of the German cluster points since ages, when it comes to outstanding engineering and quality.

Zeppelin, ZF, MTU, Dornier and so on.

 

Thrusters

AC thruster, emmmm, only found this one on DC, massive current of course. Does anyone have any details of the AC units, needs of course a gen set running now, may even be 3 phase.....therein lies a few problems. The units are not very large in the hole size.

 

Yes - I just took a look at that brochure on their website - about the only info I've found.
AC, but still 12 - 48 v supplied.
As said, ZF aren't silly... doubt they'd be suggesting thrusters for smaller recreadtional craft that required gensets to be running or 3-phase power supplies...

Part of the long duty cycle must be down to the variable speed... note that it says up to 30 minutes.....

 

...right, that could well be the key work, thanks for the info.