Voyager 2.0 Trials Under Motor

Voyager 2.0 Trials Under Motor - November 2018

Navigating a Sailing vessel is more complicated than navigating a motor vessel.

So start with motoring first.

The boat was fitted with motor pod on a stubby fin, instead of the full size sailing fin.

Additional battery power and an Electronic speed controller were added in order to commence trials of the boat and the software under motor.

This proved to be a valuable approach to addressing some of the software design issues, before heading into the complexity sailing.

It allowed trialling of many of the systems in a more controlled environment than sailing would have allowed.:

• Steering and course keeping
• Executing a mission
• Loitering
• Telemetry and SD Card Logging
• Magnetic compass accuracy

Setting up the motor

Typical scene before commencing

Realtime Telemetry Display - This image highlights compass accuracy problems

Heading off under motor on a mission

Going well

Note: This is part of the ongoing development of a low cost autonomous oceangoing sailing drones, utilising a self-trimming wingsail. This is the Voyager series of sailing drones.