PROJECT BLUE SKY
If I’m not mistaken, no one is going to challange a hull that fits in the box, provided it’s rigged at the time … thus, the 12 1/2 inch beamed baby foiler will be judged legal … (speak up now because I will swear very very loudly if 8 weeks into this somebody changes their mind) …
I will design the rig first, foils second, then the platform and finally fit the electronics … given her tiny size, I’m a little daunted by the unique design and build demands … none-the-less, here’s how the now-named, Project Blue Sky breaks out …
RIG OBJECTIVES
Mast needs to travel from port to starboard (to fit in box)
Centre of effort should remain as centred as possible.
It is desirable for the sails to create enough vertical lift to balance heeling forces (a lower than normal aspect sail to keep ce down, canted to windward …?)
Provided enough power to overcome hull resistance and lift the wee thing …
Overall weight below 40 grams.
FOILS
Objective is to lift the boat at potential Footy speeds … thus
How do we answer the question whether it is even possible to generate enough lift?
What righting moments can be achieved?
Profiles?
Size?
Load distribution?
Construction … could be an easy carbon sandwich, or if profiles are thin enough, it could be damn hard.
PLATFORM
Will likely test two … a catamaran, and a canoe body mono as drawn in previous post … unless neutraility can be designed into the rig, leeward bouancy will need to be considered … (thus rig and foils first)
ELECTRONICS
Wow, that seems like a long way away … will require micro servers etc etc
CURRENT REQUIREMENTS
Access to resources
Ideas
The knowledge of those who know …
Should anyone be so inclined, first off, I’d love thoughts on the rig, and perhaps some pointers to appropriate primers …
Bill Green, you mentioned you’d be willing to throw in your two-cents worth … I will use google to try and track down the boats you were referring to … failing that, however have you got any addresses?
At the same time I’d like to start researching what’s possible to achieve with the foils … it will feed back into the rig’s design loop … any help or participation is eagerly anticipated (I WILL BUY BEER!!!)
Thanks to all for your interest and input to date …
Regards, Trevor Paetkau
(oh … and the still unanswered question … who are the damn fools who started this whole thing!?)