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PonderingA huge amount of time during the 5-year development cycle of the Microship was spent just staring... trying to figure out how everything will fit together. Not sure what I was thinking about here, but I don't look very happy about it!
(14 votes)
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Steering Cylinder Hydraulic FittingsAll hydraulics are interconnected with industrial-grade fittings, and the cylinders themselves are food-grade pneumatic cylinders (stainless and Delrin) with added bleeding ports spot-faced and NPT threaded. Fluid is a mix of propylene glycol and distilled water. The large white object is the Globalstar satellite antenna.
(10 votes)
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Power Management SystemThis system, designed by Tim Nolan, accepts 480 watts of solar power in 8 channels, subjects each to a maximum power point tracking algorithm, and takes care of battery management. Excess power is available on-the-fly to the thruster, automatically managed to provide maximum thrust without drawing down the battery (except when more is specifically requested). It also has a dedicated display for power system monitoring, and handles steering motor and thruster control.
(12 votes)
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Landing Gear Shock AbsorbersEach landing gear strut incorporates two concentric tubes, the lower sliding within the upper. Overall travel is nearly 8 inches, and support is provided by these stacks of elastomeric crane bumpers, bonded to disks that keep them centered on a guide rod.
(9 votes)
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Rudder Deployment HydraulicsExtension and retraction of the rudder is managed with this hydraulic cylinder, with a lip on the handle allowing locking in either position. Since something has to allow kick-up to prevent damage to the expensive carbon-fiber rudder blade, this is paralleled by a pressure-relief valve as well as a stopcock to allow "re-arming" if the fluid volumes become imbalanced by a grounding event.
(10 votes)
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Hydraulic ManifoldThe hydraulics for landing gear and rudder involve 13 cylinders, interconnected in variants of back-to-back (with multiple cylinder summing in the landing-gear steering and a kickup valve in rudder deployment). Without actively pressurized hydraulics, this is simple... as long as the volumes are balanced. This manifold, with a valve per circuit and a reservoir of fluid, allows the whole system to be quickly calibrated by simply opening associated valves, positioning drive and target cylinders as needed, and closing the valves. This is also used during the bleed process, with a gravity-feed pressure vessel to force out any air bubbles.
(11 votes)
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First Test SailReturning to Camano Island launch after the first on-water test. This was at an early fabrication stage, and lots of features are not yet in place.
(10 votes)
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Test Launch in MadisonDuring one of the speaking tours around the US in the 44-foot mothership, we visited a geek friend in Madison, tweaked the systems, and took off on the first road test of the landing gear (over a mile each way). Here I am gingerly easing it out of his driveway, with the akas folded into road-mode.
(10 votes)
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Spinfin Deployment ArmThe pedal drive unit is extended and retracted with this unit, and the cranks are connected via a Tran-torque coupler.
(10 votes)
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Below DecksPedals for the Spinfin drive unit, battery box, and the roots of the forward landing gear... and you can see the bilge mat that allows comfortable sleeping with a camping mattress. Pedal assembly is chrome-moly with brass bushings; it was intended as a temporary test unit.
(9 votes)
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DaggerboardThe daggerboard is forward-angled (very non-traditional), increasing the probability that it will be safely ejected on a grounding. This is encouraged by teflon bearing surfaces bedded into the four corners of the fiberglass trunk. Also, the dagger is at the turn of the bilge instead of on centerline, opening up the hull for sleeping. All this was incorporated into the calculated center of lateral resistance during the marine architecture phase of design.
(8 votes)
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Foredeck and Navigation LightsLooking aft from the bow, you can see the forward hatch, mast step, and the leading edge of the cowling. The navlights are Luxeon high-brightness LEDs with a shared 350mA constant-current source retrofitted into Aqua Signal housings, and these are mounted on the pole that supports the Handar ultrasonic wind sensor.
(8 votes)
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Spinfin Pedal Drive UnitThis is the Spinfin, a pedal-powered thruster designed by Bob Stuart. It can be extended and retracted (with kick-up) by a lever inside the hull, and its input shaft is coupled to a double-throw crankset. I can comfortably cruise 3.5 knots and sprint to about 5; racers using this in a lightweight speed-optimized hull can do twice that. The prop is a 13-inch model airplane propeller, and a stainless twisted roller chain operates in an oil bath. Above the Spinfin, you can see one of the landing-gear deployment levers.
(11 votes)
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T-Handle SteeringOne of the two T-handles that allows very comfortable rudder control from the cockpit. The two sides are completely independent, so a failed hydraulic circuit does not disable the boat. Below, you can just see the emergency carbon-fiber paddle, half of a Werner kayak paddle, in case we are ever dead in the water and need to fall back to the basics.
(10 votes)
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Wordplay at the DockDocked at Eagle Harbor on Bainbridge Island during the maiden voyage. It is never difficult to find someone to catch lines when arriving in this micro-yacht! Note the landing gear, which are retracted and well clear of the water.
(10 votes)
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Landing Gear Steering HydraulicsThe bow carries an assembly of three hydraulic cylinders that allow active steering of the forward landing gear while hauling the boat down the road. The relationship between one simple linkage and the curved cam follower implements the Ackerman steering function that controls turn angle of each wheel independently, eliminating "scrubbing," and the third cylinder is a summing device that allows the wheels to be pigeon-toed... creating a parking brake.
(10 votes)
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Landing Gear Root DetailClose-up of a forward landing gear strut, showing the forward-reverse shifting car, idler wheel, hydraulic fittings, and the underside of the aka.
(9 votes)
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Double Furling DrumThis foam-core and glassed ply assembly is bonded to the mast and allows complete sail deployment and furling from the cockpit. Delrin bearings ride inside the Teflon-anodized mast step.
(9 votes)
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Landing Gear ComponentsThis is the collection of custom parts that make up one of the four landing gear struts.
(10 votes)
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ForepeakInside the bow, showing stiffining ribs and the foam-core gunwale extensions that increase the freeboard of the original kevlar canoe hull.
(9 votes)
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Mast Step from BelowMast step, well bonded to hull and deck at the forward bulkhead. The white fitting on the left carries hydraulic lines and electrical cables, ensuring that either compartment can be flooded without also filling its neighbor.
(9 votes)
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Traveler End Towing bailTo allow towing another boat (or my dinghy!) I made a pair of stainless bails that were fitted to the ends of the Ronstan mainsheet traveler.
(8 votes)
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The ArchThe arch, a light foam-core structure aft of the cockpit, provides a number of functions. It supports both main and aft dodger fabric, carries the mainsheet traveler, provides a tow bridle attachment for another boat, and is the mounting surface for sternlight, J-pole antenna, and this Mobri radar reflector.
(8 votes)
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Steering HydraulicsDetailed view of the hydraulic landing gear steering system on the bow, showing the follower that implements the Ackerman steering function. Input is a standard winch handle that plugs into a molded fiberglass socket, the red valve locks the steering angle, and the purple knob is the release for the virtual parking brake implemented by pigeon-toeing the wheels.
(9 votes)
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Minn-Kota ThrusterThe Microship has three modes of propulsion - sail, pedal, and electric. The latter is provided by this thruster (now with a custom prop better suited to the load), mounted in a steering motor and easily deployable from the cockpit. A control system handles both motor drive and steering, and the boat scoots along at 4-5 knots on the approximate power available from the solar array. All excess power not needed by battery charging or system loads is also directed here, with an override to full power readily available when needed.
(11 votes)
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BEHEMOTH and MicroshipThe two Nomadic Research Labs technomadic adventure substrates parked in the woods of Camano Island, Washington
(12 votes)
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Solar ArrayAlthough not mechanically finished, one of the major features of the boat is a 480-watt folding photovoltaic array based on Solarex 30-watt ultralite modules. The panels can take body weight, and can be partially retracted to minimize underwing slamming in rough conditions. They index into pins molded into the gunwales, and are intended to be supported outboard by a flexible linkage to a rail on the ama (allowing overall twist).
(10 votes)
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Microship Wordplay in Lab - StarboardOverall view of the boat, showing the Spinfin pedal drive unit.
(8 votes)
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Microships Returning from the SeaAt the end of the 134-mile shakedown cruise, Microships Wordplay and Songline return to Camano Island. The landing gear are extended, and I appear to be somewhat preoccupied with missing a large rock. These are seriously fun boats.....
(11 votes)
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Fitting the Thruster Steering MotorWorking in the Microship Lab. Standard Horizon Marine VHF is just visible under the arch.
(8 votes)
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Luxeon Navlight RetrofitOne of the homebrew navigation lights with 1-watt Luxeon emitter and 350 mA constant current source.
(8 votes)
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View Across the BowOn a calm day near Port Orchard, clearly showing the rigging: white mainsheet, green split vang, red outhaul, black furler lines, and blue bow painter. This boat is light on her feet despite all the complexity, and has a sort of high-tech "magic carpet" feel... a very personal little ship.
(9 votes)
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Landing Gear Lower Unit and WheelThe active steering input arrives via the scissor assembly, to allow operation across the shock-absorbing suspension. The Seitech wheel hubs turn freely on Delrin needle bearings, and all the aluminum parts in the complete system are bead-blasted, hard anodized, and dichromate sealed to render them completely impervious to salt water.
(8 votes)
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Forward Hull and HatchThe hatch is 1/2 inch Divinycell core like the rest of the deck, with a neoprene gasket inside the overhanging lip that engages a coaming. It sheds water very well. Since it lifts off completely, it is tethered with a piece of kevlar cord to prevent loss. In this photo, you can also see one of the "winglets" that minimizes spray in rough conditions, as well as some of the landing gear rigging.
(8 votes)
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Water Faucet and Port GunwaleThe faucet incorporates a switch with the valve, powering a tiny Shurflo pump to deliver drinking water from the tank. Also visible is the rudder uphaul/downhaul hydraulic cylinder and the daggerboard most of the way down in its trunk.
(8 votes)
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Rudder RetractedThe rudder can be unpinned from the deployment cylinder and laid across the afterdeck for safe transport. In this photo, you can also see one of the steering cylinders; two fully independent systems provide push-pull control from the T-handles in the cockpit.
(10 votes)
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Rudder DeploymentThe carbon-fiber rudder is raised and lowered through the steering cheeks by a fat cylinder controlled from the cockpit (and is protected in a grounding by an over-pressure valve with paralleled reset stopcock). The coupling between the deployment cylinder and the control arm is an easily removed pin, allowing the rudder to be laid across the afterdeck for transport.
(8 votes)
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Rudder HydraulicsDetail of rudder system... the retraction cylinder rides on the stock assembly that is steered by the long slender cylinders coupled to cockpit T-handles.
(9 votes)
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Forward Landing Gear StrutLanding gear development was a huge part of this project. Here you can see the strut that pivots in a Teflon socket through the hull, carrying a hydraulic cylinder that incorporates inputs from the deployment levers and steering system to either track down the road or rotate parallel to the water upon retraction. Linear rod motion is converted to rotary via the cable and idler, turning the lower unit bearings via the scissor assembly that spans the 8-inch suspension travel. A further bit of complexity is the ability to change the effective relationship to the deployment cables depending on whether we are going forward or reverse... thus optimizing the castering.
(9 votes)
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Double Furler CleatThe furling line takes the form of a loop, with its ends captive in the drum on the mast, and this pair of cam cleats allows it to be locked in any position. The red handle is the end of one of the four landing gear deployment levers.
(9 votes)
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Aka NestAft aka (crossbeam) in its afterdeck nest. This can be unbolted, but more often the Microship is folded for transport (major disassembly is messy).
(9 votes)
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Sisterships Prepping for LaunchSister ships, Wordplay and Songline, preparing for the test sail in Madison, Wisconsin.
(8 votes)
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Rigging LinesMain rigging lines, all Sta-Set double braid. From top to bottom: traveler, vang, mainsheet, bow, and outhaul. Ends are all properly seized with waxed lacing twine.
(8 votes)
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Dual-Band J-Pole AntennaThis stainless J-pole covers the amateur radio 2-meter and 70-centimeter bands, and the mounting allows it to easily flip out and hinge down along the cockpit where it is captured by a molded rubber clip. This type of antenna does not need a ground plane, and is well suited to a small fiberglass boat.
(8 votes)
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Microship Wordplay in Lab - PortOverall view of the boat, showing the electric thruster. The hull is a Wenonah Odyssey kevlar canoe; everything above the original gunwales (about 2" below the deck) is custom.
(8 votes)
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AnchorA Delta anchor is mounted in a launcher, with proper chain tensioner. The rode itself is 180 feet of nylon webbing on a reel mounted to the hatch cover (this never carries snubbing loads).
(9 votes)
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Gratuitous Navlight Beauty ShotI can't help it; I'm a geek. The night the bicolor LED navlight came online I just had to do this.
(9 votes)
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Long view from the BowMicroship in the lab, looking aft. The 30-watt solar panel on the cowling is separate from the main 480-watt array intended to fill the complete space between the hulls.
(9 votes)
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Water TankDrinking water is stored in this 7-liter tank that can be easily removed and filled at a tap. The quick-release fitting connects it to the Shurflo pump and conveniently located faucet under the port gunwale. The little black widget at the top is a mount for a Garmin GPS.
(7 votes)
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Cockpit General ViewThe ugly wood enclosure is not yet finished, and is the "pedaling envelope." Everything between that and the cowling is available for electronics. Below that you can see the crankset, as well as the industrial mat that keeps a camping mattress off the bilge. Sleeping aboard is surprisingly comfortable, and was designed to accommodate my 6'4" height. In this photo, the daggerboard is retracted but still supported by the trunk.
(7 votes)
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Cowling and Forward AkaThe forward crossbeam is bolted into a molded nest, and this structure is closely integrated with the bulkhead that also distributes stresses from the mast step - a Teflon-anodized aluminum tube that accepts Delrin bearings on the base of the mast. All rigging hardware is Ronstan, and the rectangular black patches are nonskid to allow safe passage to the foredeck in wet conditions.
(9 votes)
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Adjustable Sling SeatThis webbing seat was designed for the Ryan recumbent bicycle, and provides excellent body support and ventilation without robbing power from pedaling (as would a padded seat). The front is suspended via Wichard hooks from eyes adjacent to the rudder handles, and by releasing these the seat can be laid on the afterdeck to allow comfortable sleeping aboard. The back of the seat supports the pivoting arms in yokes that allow vernier adjustment, so both the height and fore-aft position can be adjusted. (I am 6'4", so it is as far back as it will go.)
(8 votes)
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