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US 5,398,628 AGranted
Surfing ship transition system
AssigneeVehicle Research Corporation
InventorScott Rethorst
Life of this patent
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AssigneeVehicle Research Corporation
InventorScott Rethorst
Estimating the term…
A surfing ship that generates a singular water wave and rides on its crest efficiently at high speeds. Two complementary features to assist in the transition from displacement mode to high speed surfing mode comprise a pair of hydrofoils on either side of the ship near its bottom to increase surface area and span to lift the ship upwards at the low speed beginning of its transition, and a set of symmetric nested concavities of increasing camber on the bottom of the ship itself to reduce the wetted area in a controlled manner as the ship approaches its cruise mode at high speeds. The hydrofoils are retractable, enabling their extension for transition and cruise and their retraction for high speed cruise. Intermediate positions of the hydrofoils also offer the possibility of dihedral to aid in roll stability. The nested bottom concavities are bounded by forward ramps and aft steps to control water contact, with the increasing camber towards the center of the nest matching the convex slope increase of the surfing wave with speed. A flexible plate bridging the innermost concavity changes its camber to match the convex slope of the surfing wave during cruise. Stability and control during cruise is enhanced by a two-level system including both aerodynamic and hydrodynamic stability and control surfaces, and by an upswept ship bottom that provides a displacement restoring force in pitch if a disturbance brings the ship bottom in contact with the surface of the water.
An improved water surfing ship employing dynamic lift allowing high speed operation with minimum drag, the improvement comprising:
An improved water surfing ship employing dynamic lift, allowing high speed operation with minimum drag, the improvement comprising:
An improved water surfing ship employing dynamic lift, allowing high speed operation with minimum drag, having a hull with a bottom, including a portion which is longitudinally concave down, said portion proximate the fore-and-aft center of gravity of the ship and generating a singular water wave at high speed;
An improved water surfing ship employing dynamic lift, allowing high speed operation with minimum drag, having a hull with a bottom, including a portion which is longitudinally concave down, said portion proximate the fore-and-aft center of gravity of the ship and generating a singular water wave at high speed, said improvement comprising:
An improved water surfing ship employing dynamic lift, allowing high speed operation with minimum drag, having a hull with a bottom, including a portion which is longitudinally concave down, said portion proximate the fore-and-aft center of gravity of the ship and generating a singular water wave at high speed, said improvement comprising:
An improved water surfing ship employing dynamic lift, allowing high speed operation with minimum drag, having a hull with a bottom, including a portion which is longitudinally concave down, said portion proximate the fore-and-aft center of gravity of the ship and generating a singular water wave at high speed, said improvement comprising:
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.