A new concept for future boats.

A lil late, but here...

I have pondered the same idea for quite some time. I have a somewhat simple way of creating the sine wave. I'm hoping to try it this summer.

 

My interest is in a deployable devise for generating power in the shallow water or air between a cataramans hull . I recently saw this video. It is not a propulsion device but I thought it might be applicable to this thread as it does not use rotary motion but uses a flexible membrane instead to generate power. It is remarkably simple. http://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/industry/4224763.html

 

Wihtout wanting to doubd the feasibility of the boat with a wiggeling bottom, I think it is far too radical to have an immediate future simply because you want to change the propultion and the boat and make it amphibian too, and that is going a tad too far in one single step.

However going back to the original statement in the first post, "it is difficult to compete with the propeller", I disagree.

Perhaps that is precielsy what must be done. Dolphine can travell at high speed with a wave motion. In stead of turning the whole boat into a molusk, why not have a normal prooven rigid displacement hull, propelled by a dophine like propeller?
A boat with a submerged "tail" that waves around and pushes the boat.

Now don't ask me how to do it...diesel engine gearbox, leaver and crankshaft...I don't know, you figure it out, but it must be a heck of a lot simpler than a mushy bottom boat.

 

People complain about docking with surface drives - a tail would be going a lot further to get into a slip or berth.

 

Docking problems eh? Haven even invented it yet and already have detractors...jeee.

what about if the whole keel is a fin that flaps? It does not have to stick out at the back.

However I like the idea of a tail at the back...if you go past another boat that did not stop when you were on the dock, a push on the gas and ... splash!

 

I wish you every success! Unfortunately I have no opportunity to do this on a boat and decided to build a toy amphibious vehicle like you can see on the picture

 

Timothy:The flexible membrane generator thingy is waaay clever and should have been obvious to all the genius types like me and everyone else on this forum. The dude in the video appears to be a nerd, but what this world needs is more nerds who actually produce working models such as the one he demonstrates. Actually, Bill Gates is/was a nerdy type and look where that landed him.

Now back to the original thread.

 

Timothy:The flexible membrane generator thingy is waaay clever and should have been obvious to all the genius types like me and everyone else on this forum. The dude in the video appears to be a nerd, but what this world needs is more nerds who actually produce working models such as the one he demonstrates. Actually, Bill Gates is/was a nerdy type and look where that landed him.

Now back to the original thread.

 

We need not dismiss the wave membrane idea just yet. It is clear that there are some serious mechanical and material issues to overcome before it can become a viable method. Impossible? No!

I recall a comment that I once read in a boaty book. The book; The 40 Knot Sailboat by Bernard Smith. The comment was: "Dammit don't tell me why this won't work, tell me how it might be made to work." We may also recall that Edison was told that his light bulb would not work during his quest for a solution.

 

Dear All


Here is my beginning in this forum. I'm an engineer and an inventor at the same time, so it is very hard to leave an opposite opinion on the other's ideas. Please understand me..

We should accept below notes first of all because it's a sure natural phenomenon.

I proceeded three cases of virtual experiments with below poor drawings.

The most beneficial environment in which the watercraft can go as speedy as possible is the shallow water.

- The membrane's moving speed should by very fast. If it is slow, the mass in the drawing can't cause a reaction force because there will be a circulation of water through the left and right openings under the watercraft.
- It can be beneficial to block the two openings like a hovercraft.

On a deep water, the energy-loosing-circulation will occur widely under the watercraft. So I imagine the propulsion speed has quite lower limit.


Finally the watercraft can't move on the ground. There is no mass to push and the membrane is just moving up and down like the water wave.



I've read several kind replies of messabout.. You are respectable indeed..

But I think this idea should be dismissed.

Although, instead of the idea, here is my alternative idea expected to work quite well.. I can't suggest anyone to make a working demonstrator or try a test..
This my idea(a cross-sectional drawing) is also useless.. So sorry..



Bintz

 

To Bintz

Though not an inventor, I too am an engineer. I am attempting to make a human powered raft for a local 5 mile race down a large river. My design is very similar to your last diagram with the exception that I only will have one flexible membrane at the bottom, and the bottom of the raft will serve as the top of the wave channel. I have no intention of ever traveling on land with it, and the raft will most likely be powered by 3-4 humans, as per competition rules.

Still working on some final drawings, but I will attach them when they are complete.

 

It is interesting concept. I would like to see the final drawings. Do you know about my thread: Traveling wave jet propulsion: http://www.boatdesign.net/forums/showthread.php?p=76783? Your concept is something different.

 

Hello lasasj


Sorry, my expression was rude..

At this moment, I hope to correct my last reply. I had to say, "I can't suggest anyone to make a working demonstrator for any commercial purposes."

This opinion has been from seeing the difference of movements between swimming animals and moving watercrafts. When we consider the penguin's movement under water, its whole body is a drive-system. Every muscle in its body works when it swims and generates heat which means the energy loss. The heat is beneficial for the penguin to live out.

But how about a watercraft? We should make its moving portion as small as possible for reduction of the energy loss because big moving part causes big amount of heat and the heat is useless.
The idea of traveling-wave-propulsion is expected to give much inspiration to people when it moves on water as a completed watercraft. But ①it has big moving portion (inside the system) and ②most of the moving portion contacts with water (outside the system). Both of them generate heat, the energy loss in action. So the idea can't be efficient enough to be an alternative to propeller in future.


Bintz

 

Good comments Bintz. Here's a system that might have some potential because it uses water friction for propulsion and turns things around. The higher the surface skin friction, the faster it goes. No worry about muscle coordination like required in a "whole body" system. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Psyl-AQ0m2A It was discussed in the human power boats thread #574. A modified, motorized version called the "hydrocopter" uses the same principle but is much faster since it rides above the surface without any displacement losses.

Porta

 

hydrocopter image

Sorry that was post #574 on PEDAL powered boat in this forum. Here's the hydrocopter image: http://www.boatdesign.net/forums/at...1092498029-wingboat-design-hydrocopter2lg.jpg

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