JPS60139593A - Control device for motor-powered sailboat - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To aim at improvements in propulsion power and steering performance, by making a control device so as to selectively output control signals for thrust generation or the steering of a ship to a main engine, a steering gear, a mast turning gear and a sail on-off device after receiving a detection signal out of a detecting device. CONSTITUTION:A first detecting device D1 detecting shipping thrust information and a second detecting device D2 detecting shipping steering information both are installed. In addition, there are provided with an anemoscope 11, a wind gauge 12, a sensor 13 detecting a turning angle and an unfurling angle of a sail 3, a sensor 14 detecting a steering angle and a sensor 15 detecting a main engine speed. And, furthermore, there is provided with a control device C which selectively outputs control signals for thrust generation or the steering of a ship to a main engine 6, a steering gear 7, a turning gear 5 and a hydraulic system 4, receiving each detection signal out of these sensors 11-15.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a sailing boat that obtains propulsion from sails and a main engine, and particularly to a control device for the same.

Recently, due to the increasing trend toward energy conservation in commercial ships, the use of sails is being rediscovered, and in some cases, sails have even been put into practical use.

In order to obtain propulsion in a conventional sailboat, in addition to the main engine, a mast 2 is provided on the hull 1, as shown in Fig. 1, and is rotatable around a vertical axis. Some are equipped with a rigid sail (hereinafter simply referred to as "sail") 3 that can be folded.

The opening and closing of the sail 3 uses a hydraulic device 4, etc., which is pivotally connected to the opening of the mast 2 and the sail 3, as shown in FIG.

Such sailing boats usually have a control device for opening and closing the sails 3 and a control device for main engine output and steering equipment, and automate the opening and closing of the sails 3 and the operation of the main engine. .

The flow of such automation is shown in Figure 3. That is, information such as wind speed and wind direction information, main engine rotation speed, speed, rudder angle, deployment angle (degree of deployment) and deployment direction of the sail 3 is input into the computer in step A1. A2) After smoothing these information (step A3), the gain when using the sail 3 is calculated (step A4), and then it is determined whether the gain is 0 in step A5.

If gain>0, then in step A6, calculate the main engine power, rudder angle, degree of deployment, and direction of deployment that maximize the gain, and according to the calculation results, in step A7, calculate the main engine power, rudder angle, degree of deployment, and direction of deployment that maximize the gain.

It drives a steering device, a mast rotation device (hereinafter simply referred to as a "rotation device"), and a hydraulic device as a hood opening/closing device.

On the other hand, if the gain is not 0, in step A8, the direction and degree of deployment of the sail that minimizes the wind pressure resistance are calculated, and then in step A9, the rotating device and the hydraulic device are driven in accordance with the calculation results.

However, in such a conventional control device for a sailing rock boat, the sail 3 is merely used as a means for obtaining thrust from the wind. Therefore, by attaching the sail 3 to the hull 1, thrust can be obtained and an energy saving effect, that is, an improvement in fuel efficiency can be obtained, but on the other hand, there are various obstacles.

One of them is considered to be a deterioration in maneuverability.

Thrust can be obtained by attaching the sail 3, but depending on the positional relationship such as the wind direction, wind force (wind speed), or the direction of the sail, the sail 3 may
There are various forces at work, not just those that are effective.

In FIGS. 4(,) to (e), arrow a indicates the direction of wind flow, arrow s indicates the direction of force, and arrow C indicates the wind direction.

Therefore, even if a boater turns the steering gear in order to turn, for example, once the boat starts rotating, the relative relationship between the sails 3 and the wind changes moment by moment, so in some cases, a force that impedes the steering may be generated. may work in some cases.

Although this is fine during normal turning, maneuvering the vessel in an emergency places a large technical burden on the boater. This problem is considered to be becoming even more important today as ships using sails 3 tend to become larger and larger.

The present invention was created under these circumstances, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a control device for a sailboat that improves both the propulsion performance and maneuverability of a sailboat.

For this reason, the control device for a sailing ship of the present invention is provided in a ship having a main engine and a steering device, which is provided with a mast erected on the hull and a rigid sail attached to the mast. a mast rotation device that rotates the sail around a vertical axis, and a hood opening/closing device that drives the rigid sail to open and close, a first detection means for detecting thrust information of the vessel, and a second detection means for detecting vessel maneuvering information. A detection means is provided, which receives the detection signals from the first detection means and the second detection means and sends control signals to the main engine, the steering device, the mast rotation device, and the hood opening/closing device for thrust generation or ship maneuvering. The present invention is characterized in that a control means for selectively outputting is provided.

Hereinafter, a control device for a sailboat as an embodiment of the present invention will be explained with reference to the drawings. FIG. 5 is a schematic configuration diagram thereof, FIG. 6 is a flowchart for explaining its operation, and FIG.
a), (b), Figure 8 (a), (b), Figure 9 (a),
(b) and FIG. 10 are both explanatory diagrams showing a series of movements of the sailboat over time, and in each figure,
The same amounts as in FIGS. 1 to 4 indicate substantially the same parts. As shown in FIG. 5, the hull 1 of this sailboat has a mast 2 erected on a deck, in addition to a main engine 6 that drives a screw propeller and a steering device 7 that drives a rudder 7a. ing. The mast 2 is rotated around a vertical axis by an outer mast rotation device (hereinafter referred to as "rotation device") 5, which includes a hydraulic motor. Further, a foldable (openable/closed) sail 3 (also in this embodiment, the sail 3 is configured as a rigid sail, but will be abbreviated as "sail" hereinafter) is pivotally attached to the mast 2. In order to open and close the sail 3, a hydraulic device 4 as a hood opening/closing device is provided. Thereby, the deployment angle and deployment direction of the sail 3 can be freely adjusted.

By the way, the first detection means D1 for detecting the thrust information of the ship
and second detection means D2 for detecting ship maneuvering information. That is, the wind vane 11. Wind meter 12. A sensor 1 that detects the rotation angle of the sail 3 and the deployment angle of the sail 3
3. Sensor 14 for detecting the steering angle. A sensor 15 is provided to detect the main engine rotation speed.

Furthermore, the main engine 6. A control means C is provided for selectively outputting a control signal for FA rudder device seven-mouth thrust generation or ship maneuvering. Each sensor 11
Computer 2 which receives detection signals (electrical signals) from computers 21 to 15; and main engine 6 which receives signals from this computer 21; A controller 22 is provided that outputs control signals to the steering device 71, rotating device 5, and hydraulic device 4.

The computer 21 has a CPU as its main part, an input/output interface, a memory, etc., and the controller 22 has the function of appropriately amplifying, sorting, and distributing signals from the computer 21.

Hereinafter, the flow of the processing performed in the control means C will be explained in the sixth section.
This will be explained using figures. First, in step B1, wind direction and wind speed information is input, and in step B2, physical quantities such as main engine rotation speed, speed, rudder angle, sail 3 deployment angle (deployment degree: tension), and sail 3 deployment direction are input. These physical quantities are then smoothed in step B3.

Next, in step B4, it is determined whether emergency avoidance is necessary.
If No, it is determined in step B5 whether or not a turning movement is required.

If the turning movement is not required, then in step B5
Taking the o route, the gain when sail 3 is used is calculated in step B6, and it is determined whether this gain is O in step B7.

If gain>0, in this case wind energy can be used, so in step B8, calculate the main output, rudder angle, degree of deployment of sail 3, and direction of deployment of sail 3 to maximize the gain. , based on this calculation result, in step B9, the main engine 6. Steering device 79 issues commands to rotating device 5 and hydraulic device 4. This allows the most efficient use of wind energy for propulsion. In other words, it contributes to energy saving.

Also, if the gain is not 0, in this case, is it possible to utilize wind energy?In step B) 0, calculate the deployment direction and deployment angle of the sail 3 that minimizes wind pressure resistance, and based on this calculation result, , In step 81.1, commands are given to the top opening/closing hydraulic system 4 and the rotating device 5. This makes it possible to minimize the wind pressure resistance that the sail 3 receives, and to perform propulsion by the main PIia.

By the way, if emergency avoidance is necessary, in step B4,
Taking the l'Es route, in step B12, the main engine power, rudder angle, deployment angle and deployment direction of the sail 3 are calculated for emergency avoidance, and based on the calculation results, in step B13, the main engine 6. Steering device'7. It issues commands to the hydraulic device 4 and rotating device 5.

If a turning movement is required, in step B5, the main power, rudder angle, deployment angle and deployment direction of the sail 3 that are effective at the time of turning are calculated, and based on the result of this 81 calculation, the step is performed.

At step 1315, main focus 6. Steering device7. It issues commands to the hydraulic device 4 and rotating device 5.

In this way, even if emergency avoidance or turning movement becomes necessary, thrust and ship maneuvering can be automatically controlled to perform emergency avoidance or turning movement.

As is clear from the two series of explanations, the process shown by the chain line in FIG. 6 is not performed in the conventional device.

In other words, as shown in Figure 3, in the past, after inputting the wind direction, wind force, etc., the gain was immediately calculated, and the decision was made as to whether or not to use the sail 3.
Control was performed by calculating the state of various devices that maximized gain when using sail 3, and the state of various devices that minimized resistance when not using sail 3. As shown in FIG. 6, after inputting various information, the device determines whether or not it is in an emergency state, and also determines whether or not it is making a turning movement, and performs the following operations at each time. It has a part that calculates and controls the optimal state of various devices. In other words, conventionally, the computer 21 and control system were used to handle the sail 3 only as a propulsion device, but with this device, it can also be handled as a control device.

Next, FIGS. 7 to 10 show the movements during actual turns and in emergencies (when a sudden stop is required or when the course must be suddenly changed).

In each figure, the arrow d indicates the direction of the wind, and the arrow f indicates the direction of the force generated on the sail 3, and each figure shows how time passes sequentially from the bottom to the top. .

Here, Figure 7(,) shows an example of turning to the left when the wind is coming from the right, and Figure 7(b) shows an example of turning to the right when the wind is coming from the right. .

Further, FIG. 8(a) shows an example of turning to the left when the wind is coming from the front, and FIG. 8(b) shows an example of turning to the left when the wind is coming from behind.

Furthermore, Fig. 9(a) shows an example of an emergency stop when the wind is coming from the right, and Fig. 9(b) shows an example of an emergency course change when the wind is coming from the right. The figure shows an example of an emergency stop when the wind is coming from the front.

As described in detail above, according to the control device for a sailing ship of the present invention, in a ship having a main engine and a steering device, a mast erected on the hull and a rigid sail attached to the mast can be controlled. and a mast rotation device that rotates the mast around a vertical axis, and a hood opening/closing device that drives the rigid sail to open and close, and detects thrust information of the vessel.
A detecting means and a second detecting means for detecting ship maneuvering information are provided, and the main* detecting means receives the detection signals from the first detecting means and the second detecting means.

It has a simple configuration that includes control means that selectively outputs control signals for thrust generation or ship maneuvering to the steering device, mast rotation device, upper sail opening/closing device, and improves the propulsion performance and maneuverability of sailboats. It is possible to improve both, and this has the advantage of greatly improving turning performance and emergency response ability.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Figures 1 and 2 show a sailboat, with Figure 1 being a perspective view thereof, Figure 2 being a plan view showing its canopy opening/closing device, and Figure 3 being a plan view showing its canopy opening/closing device.
．． Figure 4 shows the control system for a conventional sailboat.
The figure is a flowchart to explain the action, and Figure 4 (a) ~
(e) are explanatory diagrams of their functions, and Figures 5 to 10 show a control device for a sailboat as an embodiment of the present invention, and Figure 5 is a schematic configuration diagram thereof, and Figure tA6. 7(a), t(bL), FIG. 8(a), (b), FIG. 9(a), (b), and FIG. It is an explanatory diagram showing a series of movements of a running ship over time. 1. Hull, 2. Mast, 3. Rigid sail, 4.
...Hydraulic system as hood opening/closing device, 5..Mast rotation device, 6..Main engine, 7.1 Steering device, 7a..Rudder, 11..
Wind vane, 12... Wind meter, 13... Sensor for detecting rotation angle and deployment angle of sail, 14... Sensor for detecting rudder angle, 1
5. Main engine rotational speed detection sensor, 21.. Computer, 22.. Controller, C.. Control means, Dl.. First detection means, D2.. Second detection means. Sub-Agent Patent Attorney Yoshihiko Iinuma Figure 1 Figure 4 (o) (b) ? (C) (d) (e) Figure 5 Kazuo Wakasugi, Commissioner of the Japan Patent Office 1 Indication of the case 1982 Patent Application No. 247180 2 Name of the invention Control device for sailboats 3 Case of the person making the amendment Relationship with Applicant Postal Code 1.00 Address 2-5-1 Marunouchi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo Name (62
0) Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. 4 Sub-agent Postal code: 160 Address: 5-3 Minamimotomachi, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo, Unichi-Niji 6 Full text of the weekly statement subject to amendment. 7. Contents of amendment The entire text of the specification will be amended as shown in the attached sheet in order to make the text larger. 8 Complete list of attached documents and amendment specification (1 copy)

Claims (1)

[Claims] A ship having a main engine and a steering device includes a mast erected on the hull and a rigid sail attached to the mast, and a mast rotation device for rotating the mast around a vertical axis; A sail opening/closing device for driving the rigid sail to open and close is provided, and a first detection means for detecting thrust information of the vessel and a second detection means for detecting vessel maneuvering information are provided, and the first detection means and A control means is provided for receiving a detection signal from the second detection means and selectively outputting a control signal for the main engine, steering device, mast rotation device, and hood opening/closing device to thrust generation or ship maneuvering. A control device for a sailboat.