System for controlling forces applied on a hydrodynamic body adhered to and moving along a hull of a sailing ship

Abstract

A system and method for controlling forces applied on a hydrodynamic body adhered to and moving along a hull of a sailing ship, the hydrodynamic body comprises at least two wheels, enabling the hydrodynamic body to move along the hull of the ship. The system comprising: at least two mechanical fingers preventing detachment of the hydrodynamic body from the ship, at least two dynamic wings located at each side of the hydrodynamic body, adding stabilization to the hydrodynamic body, an array of sensors and a controller receiving input from the array of sensors controlling and monitoring the state of the mechanical fingers and dynamic wings and the hydrodynamic body's adhesion status, and providing instructions to each mechanical finger and dynamic wing to open to a desired position to increase or reduce adhesion of the hydrodynamic body to the ship, thereby optimizing the adhesion and stability of the hydrodynamic body.

1 . A system for controlling forces applied on a hydrodynamic body adhered to and moving along a hull of a sailing ship, the hydrodynamic body comprises at least two wheels, a first wheel in a first side of the hydrodynamic body controlled by a first motor and a second wheel in a second side of the hydrodynamic body controlled by a second motor, enabling the hydrodynamic body to move along the hull of the ship, the system comprising:
 at least two mechanical fingers having a wing shape with a leading edge and a trailing edge, wherein the mechanical fingers are located such that when deployed the trailing edge rises against the water current to position the fingers at an angle creating a force perpendicular to the ship's hull which attaches the hydrodynamic body to the ship, thereby preventing detachment of the hydrodynamic body from the ship, and wherein when the mechanical fingers open and close at a fluttering movement at a certain frequency a lift force reducing adhesion of the hydrodynamic body to the ship is created;   at least two dynamic wings located at each side of the hydrodynamic body, wherein each wing is parallel to the hydrodynamic body direction and when deployed each wing opens in a direction parallel to the ship's hull and at an angle such that an adhesion force is applied on the hydrodynamic body, adding stabilization to the hydrodynamic body;   an array of sensors comprising an Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) and a motor consumption feedback sensor for providing information regarding the hydrodynamic body's adhesion status and the state of the mechanical fingers and dynamic wings;   a controller receiving input from the array of sensors controlling and monitoring the state of the mechanical fingers and dynamic wings and the hydrodynamic body's adhesion status, and providing instructions to each mechanical finger and dynamic wing to open to a desired position to increase or reduce adhesion of the hydrodynamic body to the ship, thereby optimizing the adhesion and stability of the hydrodynamic body.   
     
     
         2 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the hydrodynamic body comprises a plurality of carts, each cart having one wheel in a first side controlled by a first motor and a second wheel in a second side controlled by a second motor, enabling the hydrodynamic body to move along the hull of the ship, and wherein the at least two mechanical fingers are located in line with the length of the hydrodynamic body and/or on a downstream side of each of a wheelhouse of each cart, and/or on a top side of the cart, which is furthest from the ship's hull;
 and wherein the dynamic wings are located at each side of each cart of the hydrodynamic body.   
     
     
         3 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the hydrodynamic body is adhered to the ship with magnets and with forces generated by a passive hydrodynamic design of the hydrodynamic body. 
     
     
         4 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the hydrodynamic body is a robot. 
     
     
         5 . The system of  claim 4 , wherein the robot is a cleaning robot. 
     
     
         6 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein when the mechanical fingers are deployed, the trailing edge rises against the water current to position the mechanical fingers at an angle between 0 and 90 degrees. 
     
     
         7 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the dynamic wing is opened by pivoting around the upstream end of the wing. 
     
     
         8 . The system of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a plurality of additional mechanical fingers located along the hydrodynamic body and facing different directions, such that the moments of force acting on the plurality of carts are controlled by the controller to keep the hydrodynamic body stable.   
     
     
         9 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the IMU sensor provides differences in the direction of the hydrodynamic body at a resolution of 0.001 deg. 
     
     
         10 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the IMU sensor's sample rate is 400 samples/second. 
     
     
         11 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the instructions from the controller to the mechanical fingers and dynamic wings contain more than one step, to stabilize the hydrodynamic body. 
     
     
         12 . A method for controlling forces applied on a hydrodynamic body adhere to and moving along a hull of a ship, the hydrodynamic body comprises at least two wheels, a first wheel in a first side of the hydrodynamic body controlled by a first motor and a second wheel in a second side of the hydrodynamic body controlled by a second motor, enabling the hydrodynamic body to move along the hull of the ship, the method comprising:
 receiving by a controller, signals from an array of sensors comprising and Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) and a motor consumption feedback sensor providing information regarding forces applied on the hydrodynamic body;   controlling and monitoring by the controller the state of the mechanical fingers and dynamic wings and the hydrodynamic body's adhesion status, and accordingly instructing by the controller:
 at least two mechanical fingers, controlled individually, having a wing shape with a leading edge and a trailing edge, to deploy such that the trailing edge rises against the water current to position the fingers in an angle creating a force perpendicular to the ship's hull which attaches the hydrodynamic body to the ship thereby preventing detachment of the hydrodynamic body from the ship, and such that when the mechanical fingers open and close at a fluttering movement at a certain frequency, a lift force reducing adhesion of the hydrodynamic body to the ship is created; and 
 at least two dynamic wings located at each side of the hydrodynamic body, to open in a direction parallel to the ship's hull and at an angle such that an adhesion force is applied on the hydrodynamic body, adding stabilization to the hydrodynamic body. 
   
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 12 , wherein the hydrodynamic body comprises a plurality of carts, each cart having one wheel in a first side controlled by a first motor and a second wheel in a second side controlled by a second motor, enabling the hydrodynamic body to move along the hull of the ship, and wherein the at least two mechanical fingers are located in line with the length of the hydrodynamic body and/or on a downstream side of each of a wheelhouse of each cart, and/or on a top side of the cart, which is furthest from the ship's hull, and wherein the dynamic wings are located at each side of each cart of the hydrodynamic body. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 12 , wherein when the controller receives from the motor consumption sensor a signal that the motor consumption of electrical current is above a predetermined range, the controller instructs each mechanical finger to open and close at a fluttering movement at a certain frequency which creates a lift force such that the adhesion force is reduced and the friction on the relative wheel is reduced; and wherein when the controller receives from the motor consumption sensor a signal that the motor consumption of electrical current is below a predetermined range, the controller instructs each mechanical finger and/or dynamic wing to open in an angle creating a down force such that the adhesion force is increased and the friction on the relative wheel is increased to eliminate sliding and disconnection of the hydrodynamic body from the ship.