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Displaying items by tag: Robotic Sailing

An uncrewed research vessel has just completed a three-week mapping mission in the North Atlantic, as BBC News reports.

The award-winning USV Maxlimer was controlled remotely via satellite for its mission to map an area of seafloor 1km below the surface, just off the continental shelf.

While the project demonstrates the capabilities of robotic sailing for marine science purposes, it also shows the potential for future appplications in freight and cargo.

BBC News has much more on the story HERE.

Published in Marine Science

#Sailbots - The University of British Columbia's robotic sailboat team is looking for help from marinas on the West Coast as they make plans for next year's Microtransat Challenge.

The Canadian engineering students have taken first place two years running in the World Robotic Sailing Championship, which this year was held in Galway Harbour and hosted by NUI Galway.

But the holy grail of robotic sailing is the Microtransat Challenge, the competition to design and build a fully autonomous sea-going vessel under 4m long and capable of crossing the Atlantic unaided.

The first attempt at the challenge, launched by scientists from Aberystwyth University in Wales, ended in failure as the robotic yacht disappeared after reversing course.

UBC Sailbots intend to be more successful in setting their robo-boat to sea from Newfoundland in eastern Canada to Ireland, one of two sanctioned routes for the challenge.

But they need assistance from a willing marina along the Wild Atlantic Way to provide accommodation for team members, a place to pick up their boat and a support vessel to shadow their boat to the finish line.

Any interested parties can contact the team via their website at ubcsailbot.org.

Published in News Update

#Robots - Co Galway will play host to what could be the future of sailing later this year in the shape of the World Robotic Sailing Championships, as The Irish Times reports.

While on the surface the idea might seem like Robot Wars on the water, there's some serious science and engineering muscle behind the competition - part of the Microtransat Challenge for robotic self-piloting sailing boats.

And the event will coincide with a conference at NUI Galway for researchers in the field of autonomous robotics, which has many potential applications in disaster and emergency response situations.

The Irish Times has more on the story HERE.

Published in Sailing Events
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Irish Sailing Classes and Association – There’s no shortage of one-design classes from which to choose and each gives its enthusiasts great competition, fun and camaraderie, writes Graham Smith in this review of the classes. 

One-design racing is where it all starts. It is, after all, where all the top sailors earned their stripes, battling away for line honours without a thought for a handicapper’s calculator wiping away a hard-fought victory!

Indeed, you could count on less than one hand the number of top Irish sailors who didn’t cut their teeth in a one-design dinghy! Just think of Cudmore, Barrington, Watson, Wilkins, Hennessy and Dix to name a few and you realise that they honed their skills in everything from Enterprises to Lasers and a lot in between.

At present count, there are a little over 30 one-design classes in Ireland, split almost evenly between dinghies and keelboats, a statistic which might raise a few eyebrows. They range from the long-established Mermaids, IDRA14s and Dragons to the newer additions like Fevas, Topaz and RS Elite. They all fill a particular need and give their owners and crews considerable enjoyment.

Many have attracted their World or European Championships to Irish waters over the years and while 2009 is notable for a lack of such events here, the following year will see the Etchells Worlds at Howth and perhaps a few other international regattas too.

In addition to the review, we asked each class to complete a questionnaire giving details of their fleet numbers, whether they were on a growth pattern or holding their own, so we could highlight those ‘on the up’ and those remaining static in terms of numbers. The older traditional designs, as you might imagine, fall into the latter category, although that’s not a negative!

CLASS REVIEW  The State of the Classes – League Table (as at February 2009)

S = Static; U = Up/growing

275     Optimist   U

200+   Laser   S

189     Mermaid   S

160     Flying Fifteen   S

130     RS Feva   U

115     Shannon One Design    U

100+   Mirror   S

100+   Topper   U

99       Topaz   U

94       Laser SB3   U

87       GP14   U

85       Squib   S

70       Fireball   S

70       Ruffian   S

60       J24   S

60       Shipman   S

52       Dragon   S

50       RS400/200   S

50       420    U

43       Multihulls    U

42       Dragon    S

40       Water Wags    U

40       Wayfarer    S

34       IDRA14    U

33       Puppeteer    U

28       Etchells    S

27       E-Boat    U

26       Glen    S

25       Enterprise    S

18       Sigma 33    S

18       Howth 17    U

13       RS Elite    U