With seven cameras and lots of wireless communication of video on board you can imagine that crew members in the Volvo Ocean Race are complaining about the energy it costs to power (and use) all of this. So now a company called Livewire claims to have found a solution for the 2005-2006 event, but unfortunately they do not explain how this works. So if anyone knows, drop me a line...
"But Livewire's communications exprts have now come up with a much more energy-efficient way of keeping the cameras rolling and have made power management an essential design element for the media centres on the Volvo 70 class yachts. The new design allows the media centre to be run at twenty times less power than in previous races. Wood comments: "Hopefully this will convince the teams that it is quite safe to leave the media centre on in this mode at all times."
Motor Boating Magazine takes a look at one of the ships participating in the Nordhavn Atlantic Rally, a high-seas adventure from Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., to Gibraltar. There's a lot of electronics stuff on board this ship... Here are some of the highlights:
-�It�s the autopilot that�s the most important thing,� he says. And for autopilots, Kinney selected two Furuno NavPilot 500s and added a SC 60 GPS satellite compass."
-"The first display supports Furuno�s 1953C chartplotter with a powerful 12-kW radar for 72-mile range and 1.2-degree horizontal beam width for accurate target separation."
-"The second chartplotter, an 1833C, uses a smaller radar with dome antenna that will pump out 4-kW of power for a range of about 36 miles"
-"Called NT-Link, this is a little sister to C-MAP�s rugged commercial product, only it�s coupled with the NT recreational cartography. One notable feature of NT-Link is its ability to handle online chart updates."
-"But the real heart of the navigation package is Furuno�s NavNet system, which allows for multiple sensor displays on three different display screens�the two 10.4" monitors in the pilothouse and an additional 7" remote display on the bridge."
How many marine electronics and communications equipments would you need on a rowboat...? Well, a lot if you would have to row for 3,000 miles non-stop.
"In addition to her GPS, she will have an array of safety and communication equipment onboard, including an Argos Beacon - which will report her position by satellite and, in an emergency, emit a distress signal - a desalinator to change sea water into fresh water, and an Iridium satellite phone. Several marine lights have also been installed to announce her position to approaching vessels."
And here's a funny quote on the usage of VHF radio:
"Quemere's only contact during her 2003 voyage was with an Italian supertanker that drew a little too-close-for-comfort. According to Quemere, she quickly grabbed her VHF radio and excitedly reported her position, telling one confused Italian crewman that she was in a small rowboat."
Singer Billy Joel appears to be a marine electronics fanatic as well... Apparently he asked Raymarine to outfit his new 57 Shelter Island Commuter, named Vendetta...
"When commissioned in early fall, Vendetta will be navigated with Raymarine products. The uniquely curved dash will include three C-120 displays with brilliant sunlight viewable displays, ST290 instruments, Ray215 radio, 4kw Radar open array, and the new gyro-enhanced SmartPilot with 8001 control head."
A private sailing yacht with a seven-seat helicopter and an aviation communications systems. How about that...?
"After completing sea-trials in Auckland in April and May, the 54m (178ft) Dubois-designed sloop Tiara landed an EC 130 helicopter on the aft-deck. It is believed Tiara is the first privately-owned sailing yacht with a helipad. Tiara, built by Alloy Yachts Auckland New Zealand, was specifically designed to accommodate the owner's seven-seat helicopter. The aft deck has landing lights sunk into the teak and the yacht has aviation communications systems."
In the 'What's On Board' series, we've seen some pretty amazing yachts. But when it comes to electronics, gadgets, etc, Paul Allen's Octopus is probably the one to beat. He is the co-founder of Microsoft and therefore, besides rich, pretty tech savvy we might assume... Although I can't find many specifics, I'm sure you'll get a feeling of it when you read one of the many articles on this new mega-yacht. For some additional pictures (and speculation) have a look at the Power & Motoryacht Forum.
"But guests reported that the boat was over the top -- even by billionaire-yacht standards. Details include: teak floors, a theater and basketball court, two helicopter pads and a sound-mixing studio large enough, guests were told, to produce a major motion picture. For times when Mr. Allen feels like roughing it, the yacht ports a 60-foot yacht and eventually will boast a 10-person submarine that will run on fuel cells so it can stay under water for as long as two weeks."
I've covered the gadgets and electronics on board of the WallyPower before. Since many visitors to this weblog come through Google searches on the 118 WallyPower, I thought I'd post this link to a New York Times article that discusses the WallyPower and the fact that it is relatively cheap at $25 millon... And, they found a gadget on board this yacht that I missed. The pizza oven.
"Over the course of many decades and countless deprived tycoons, it has been one of humankind's most vexing challenges: how to get, quickly and comfortably, from Portofino for breakfast to Sardinia for lunch and then, should the whim strike, St.-Tropez for dinner...."
"...It splits the difference between a lightning-quick motorboat with no room for a pizza oven (which the WallyPower has) and an individually tailored Titanic that can do a party of 500 people but just 20 miles per hour...."
"...He then explained how aerodynamic design, water-jet propulsion and a special polycarbonate material worked to make the WallyPower so fleet. He apparently did not think it worth mentioning that the boat's three 5,600 horsepower engines chug down about 1,000 gallons of fuel an hour at maximum cruising speed (75 miles an hour). He talked instead about applications of military technology and sophisticated wind-tunnel tests."
It's a fact that some of the military R&D spending will find its way back to the tax payer since innovative technologies are being applied in a commercial context at a later stage. For us boaters who have an interest in yacht automation, the U.S. Navy High Speed Vessel (HSV) SWIFT (at 294t long, it has a top-speed of 45 knots per hour) might trigger further innovation in this field. Computerworld takes a closer look at the technologies that have been deployed on this ship.
"The U.S. Navy has a new ship in its fleet that officers say may be the most technologically advanced vessel produced to date, with IT capabilities that are revolutionizing naval warfare and may play a vital role in responding to potential terrorist attacks in the U.S. The HSV (High Speed Vessel) 2 Swift, a 294-foot, aluminum-hulled catamaran, has a crew of only 42 sailors, but the lack of manpower is made up with extreme levels of automation. Nearly every function of the ship, from navigation and steering to engine and damage control, is conducted and monitored using commercial, off-the-shelf hardware and software."
The 118 WallyPower is one of the most amazing designs I have ever seen for a motor yacht. recently it has won the MYDA, the Millenium Yacht Design Award dedicated to the "layout of the Third Millennium, a design that remarkably contributed to the development of the concept of the yacht layout." The cruising speed of the 118 WallyPower is 60 knots... Interesting to see what kind of electronics are on board this ship. Some of the highlights:
Every now an then I will give you a glimpse into the electronic and communications heart of some of the most remarkable yachts in the world. Today we'll have a look at Cheyenne (former PlayStation), which is currently competing in The Jules Verne Trophy Round The World Record Attempt. Steve Fossett's design brief for this boat was pretty straightforward: "the best boat for racing fully crewed, non-stop, around the world, as fast as possible."
With seven cameras and lots of wireless communication of video on board you can imagine that crew members in the Volvo Ocean Race are complaining about the energy it costs to power (and use) all of this. So now a company called Livewire claims to have found a solution for the 2005-2006 event, but unfortunately they do not explain how this works. So if anyone knows, drop me a line...
-�It�s the autopilot that�s the most important thing,� he says. And for autopilots, Kinney selected two Furuno NavPilot 500s and added a SC 60 GPS satellite compass."
"In addition to her GPS, she will have an array of safety and communication equipment onboard, including an Argos Beacon - which will report her position by satellite and, in an emergency, emit a distress signal - a desalinator to change sea water into fresh water, and an Iridium satellite phone. Several marine lights have also been installed to announce her position to approaching vessels."
Singer Billy Joel appears to be a marine electronics fanatic as well... Apparently he 
"After completing sea-trials in Auckland in April and May, the 54m (178ft) Dubois-designed sloop Tiara landed an EC 130 helicopter on the aft-deck. It is believed Tiara is the first privately-owned sailing yacht with a helipad. Tiara, built by Alloy Yachts Auckland New Zealand, was specifically designed to accommodate the owner's seven-seat helicopter. The aft deck has landing lights sunk into the teak and the yacht has aviation communications systems."
In the 'What's On Board' 
I've covered the gadgets and electronics on board of the WallyPower 
"...It splits the difference between a lightning-quick motorboat with no room for a pizza oven (which the WallyPower has) and an individually tailored Titanic that can do a party of 500 people but just 20 miles per hour...."
It's a fact that some of the military R&D spending will find its way back to the tax payer since innovative technologies are being applied in a commercial context at a later stage. For us boaters who have an interest in yacht automation, the U.S. Navy High Speed Vessel (HSV) SWIFT (at 294t long, it has a top-speed of 45 knots per hour) might trigger further 
The 118 WallyPower is one of the most amazing designs I have ever 