I'm doing segment V4 first -- the 8-foot module that supports my co-pilot. A folding seat can be nestled into the sleeping deck to yield a smooth 4X7 foot sleeping space with four opening ports, and various hatches below this level provide access to gear. Drainage is into a protected bilge. Some of the space below this sub-deck is devoted to sealed flotation compartments. Once this series of four models is complete, they will velcro together on a display stand and help us make sense of this design... and allow better communication with the naval architect who is going to do the hull design itself.
Progress!
I'm adding a new section to these reports... "Literature Received" So much interesting material comes through here as a result of my inquiries that I should let you know it's available. I'll start today with some of the interesting recent stuff, then keep it current as new material arrives in the library. It will appear at the end of the report.
Continuing with the general requirements design, I've been thinking about getting out of the weather -- in addition to the "cabin," which is the sleeping space in the crew cockpit V4, both operating positions will have biminis. A possible high-WQ implementation of this is to use actual convertible soft tops, which are about the right size. Now if we can just add power windows... ;-)
I did a posting to rec.boats yesterday, introducing the project and asking advice on matters various. I received a tremendous response, with about 20 letters from experienced mariners commenting on strip composite versus fiberglass layups, head selection, celestial training, front rudders, instrumentation networks, and more. It's an excellent newsgroup.
Back to hull design (someday we'll be past this and doing electronics, but first things first), here's the text of a letter to TJ earlier today. He is working on AutoCAD drawings for proposals, visualization, and publishing early progress reports:
I just spoke with Robb Walker, who told me not to worry about the shape at all, but just design requirements. Well, we need to worry about it SOME to know how much volume is down there, but let's must make it simple. Upswept vee bow, gradually faired as it goes back, squarish upper deck at stern with smooth closure at waterline (but full-length, for maximum hull speed). Sort of like a big kayak with a more functional deck. I'm now toying with revision 937 of the sketch -- four major compartments:
V1 - 7' - bow, flotation, antennas, and gear hatch
V2 - 3' - head, water processing, wet data collection
V3 - 10' - SKR cockpit, electronics bays, gear stowage.
V4 - 8' - crew cockpit, cooking, sleep space, gear stowage.
The puzzles involve conversion between crew-seated mode and sleep space, as well as the most painless way to get access to electronics bays in a 3.5-4' deep hull. I'm thinking that gear hatch could be on top, in the center, and we'd remove packs to get at the pressurized space below.
(ASCII ART NOT TO SCALE, OR EVEN THE RIGHT SHAPE)
---------------- | E | | E | E-electronics | | H | | H-hatch \___|_____|___/ \ / \ E / \ / electronics main bay, cabling, etc \ / (drop-in sealed box on umbilicus) \___/ \ / Bilge v
This provides easy place to stow packs and stuff, with ample space below for electronics. But there's a long way to go to figure out access details, shockmounting, cabling, waterproofing, pump location, hull supports, etc.
LITERATURE RECEIVED
(catch-up mode since this is the first appearance of this feature -- normally this will be about 1-4 listings a day). This is included in these reports as a library function -- project participants can grep this stuff from the Microship Status Report archives to see if information is available in-house before incurring research delays. Also, if it's not here... ask! I'm not going to list the complete contents of my file cabinets and bookshelves, just the latest noteworthy additions.
Multihullshop Catalog: excellent resource of books and other materials on cruising, seamanship, multihulls, design, construction, and technical matters.
Robert E. White Instruments: Catalog of sextants, barographs, leadlines, dividers, binoculars, plotters, compasses, epirbs, and accessories.
Too Tek flyer: night vision equipment from $450 to $1250, covering light amplification levels from 1,500 to 60,000.
D. F. Crane Associates: Thorough catalog of marine computer products, including navigation and training sofwaare, simulators, tide software, weatherfax, and so on.
Wireless Industry Prospectus, June 1993. Articles on Motorola, Specialized Mobile Radio, and interviews with Steve Roberts and Richard Cortese.
Pen Magazine, #13. Many articles on Personal Digital Assistants
ComGrafix: Macintosh charting software (likely sponsor)
Tektronix literature on 1-inch color display for HUD and virtual reality applications.
Thetford 775 marine head spec sheet.
Two recent issues of Multihulls Magazine (Jan/Feb and Mar/Apr 93), and the latest Ocean Navigator (Sep/Oct 93).
Astro-Flight: high-performance cobalt PM motors for model aircraft (up to 1820 watts, if that sounds "small").
Rip 'n Grip: Velcro samples and literature -- sponsor.
Silicon Valley Bus Co: literature on Multi-port expander to add serial ports to the Macintosh.
Protel: PCB layout software for Windows, with demo disk.
Maptech: Charting software
Gougeon Brothers on Boat Construction (book): West Syste epoxies, strip planking, lofting, and other boat construction issues.
Enough. Time for one more CD and completion of the foam-covered seat model so I can pedal back to the apartment by 3 AM...
--Steve