DEMO: Comparison of Ship Hull Structures and Employment of Maritime Robots for Environmental Protection
The NUMAR research group (Nautics and Maritime Robotics) ofthe Technische Hochschule Mittelhessen – University of Applied Sciences (THM) focuses on the development of boats and maritime robots, as well as their guidance, control and navigation. The common demonstration at BtS 2014 focuses on two main points:
Firstly, one of the primary goals of the research group is to compare the V- and M-hull structures of conventional boats in terms of pitch and roll angles, with the objective of achieving the lowest possible flow resistance. This is primarily intended to be achieved by reducing the wetted hull surface area for the M-hull. The long-term goal is to develop lightweight boats with correspondingly smaller drives that can achieve comparable performance parameters. In the demonstration, the M-hull boat is presented, and through parameter variations (adjustable trim flaps, hull elongation, prop mounting height and trim angle, as well as centre of gravity shift), it will be demonstrated which parameters have the greatest impact on flow resistance.
Secondly, the group presents the results of a student project of undergraduate students in their second study semester. The students were given a prototype of a low-cost marine surface robot and had the task to find and retrieve a plastic bottle placed at a random position in a defined sea area. This is in the scopeo f addressing the problem of pollution of the world’s oceans by plastic, which is a serious problem of our current time. Their proposed solution is presented as well as the prototype robot itself, which is a further development of the one shown at last year’s BtS.