We analyzed the performance of hubless rim propellers based on the number of blades, maintaining a fixed pitch ratio and expanded area ratio, using computational fluid dynamics (CFD). Thrust coefficient, torque coefficient and efficiency according to the number of blades were analyzed. In addition, the pressure distribution on the discharge and suction sides of the blade was analyzed. As the advance ratio increases, the thrust coefficient decreases. The highest thrust was shown when the advance ratio was lowest. For the three, four, five and six-blades, the torque coefficient tended to decrease as the advance ratio increased. In the case of seven and eight-blades, the torque coefficient tended to increase as the advance ratio increased. The maximum efficiency was found when the advance ratio was 0.8. When the three-blade, it showed high efficiency at all advance ratios. A high pressure distribution was observed at the leading edge of the discharge blade, and a low pressure distribution was observed at the trailing edge. Applying a hubless rim-driven thruster with the three-blade can generate higher thrust and increase work efficiency.

This study analyzed the duct characteristics of hubless rim-driven propeller (RDP) used in underwater robots. In the previous study, flow visualization experiments were performed with an advancing ratio of 0.2 to 1. The vortex at the front of the duct increased in strength while maintaining its size as the advancing ratio decreased. Therefore, it is necessary to study the optimization of the duct shape. Conventional propeller thrusters use acceleration/deceleration ducts to increase their efficiency. However, unlike conventional propellers, it is impossible to apply to airfoil acceleration/deceleration ducts due to the RDP structure. In this study, duct wake flow characteristics, thrust force, and efficiency according to the duct shape of RDP were analyzed using numerical analysis techniques. Duct design is limited and six duct shapes were designed. As a result, an optimized duct shape was designed considering duct wake flow characteristics, thrust force, and efficiency. The shape that the outlet width of the RDP was kept constant until the end of the duct showed higher thrust force and efficiency.

This study analyzed the wake characteristics of the rim-driven propeller (RDP) used in an underwater robot. For underwater robots to perform specific missions, not only propulsion characteristics but also wake characteristics must be considered. In this study, a blade was designed based on NAC 0012 with a symmetrical cross-section. The RDP was hubless with three or four blades. The influence of both the free water surface and the bottom was considered, and the wake was measured using a particle image velocimetry in the advance ratio of 0.2 to 1. Model 1 showed symmetrical wakes in the entire advance ratio section. Model 2 showed asymmetric wakes due to the influence of the free water surface and the bottom at low advance ratio.

우리나라에서 다랑어 선망어업은 국내 원양산업 중 업종별 생산량 1위의 업종으로, 1980년대 중 후반부터 연구가 지속적으로 수행되어왔으며, 기술의 현대화 연구가 활발히 진행되어왔다. 하지만, 어선에 탑재되는 보조작업선들은 원양어업에서 중요한 역할을 맡고 있음에도 관련 연구가 미흡한 실정이다. 이에 본 연구에서는 보조작업선들 중 네트보트의 추진기를 프로펠러에서 워터제트 형태로 변경하고, 그에 따른 선형 변환을 통한 선체 부가저항 감소 및 운항성능을 향상하고자 하였다. 이를 위해 전산수치해석을 통해서 선박의 유체 성능 변화를 계산하였으며, 또한 기존 선형 및 추진기 변화 선형에 대해 모형선 수조시험을 수행하여 속도별 저항성능 비교를 수행하였다. 수치해석 및 1/7의 축소모형의 수조시험 결과, 기존의 네트보트 대비 45~58% 저항성능이 크게 향상되었으며, 이는 철망 제거에 의한 단순 침수표면적 및 선형개선에 의한 저항성능 향상을 확인하였다.

본 연구에서는 해상에서 빈번하게 발생하는 추진기 로프 감김 사고를 예방하기 위해 개발된 로프절단장치의 안전성 및 효용성 에 대한 연구를 시도하였다. 먼저 이론식과 유한요소 해석을 통하여 실선 실험에 사용될 세 종류의 로프절단장치의 볼트의 강도 및 장치가 축계에 미치는 비틀림응력을 계산하였다. 그 결과 로프절단장치에 사용된 볼트는 안전수명설계 및 손상허용설계의 관점에서 적절하게 설계된 것으로 확인되었으며, locking-up 발생 시 축계에 미치는 영향도 미미하여 안전성 또한 만족할 수 있는 수준인 것으로 나타났다. 안전성 검증을 마친 세 종류의 절단장치가 설치된 선박을 활용하여 실제로 해상에서 로프 및 어망을 절단하는 실험을 진행하였으며, 그 결과 대체적으로 실험에 사용된 20~50 mm 굵기의 로프를 잘 절단하였으나, 소형 축계에 장착된 절단장치의 경우 굵은 로프를 절단할 때는 효용성이 저하함을 알 수 있었다.

우리나라에서는 다랑어 선망어업의 기술 경쟁력을 높이기 위한 많은 연구개발이 이루어지고 있으며, 이러한 노력으로 인하여 다랑어 선망어선의 선형개선과 어군 탐지를 위한 레이다, 소나 및 위성정보시스템의 개발로 인해 조업 효율이 향상되었다. 그러나 다랑어 선망어선에 탑재되는 보조 작업선인 스키프보트, 네트보트 및 스피드보트의 경우에는 본선의 기술 현대화에 비해 기술력이 낙후되어 있 는 실정이다. 이에 본 논문에서는 그물을 끌기 위한 양망의 기능과 프로펠러로부터 다랑어를 보호하기 위하여 설치된 철망을 가진 기존 의 네트보트의 선체를 워터제트 추진기 탑재가 가능한 선체로 변경하여 다랑어 보호, 선체저항 감소 및 운항성능 향상하고자 하였다. 결 과적으로 워터제트 형태에 적합한 선형에 대해 해양수산부 고시에 의거한 알루미늄 구조강도 기준을 적용한 시제선 제작하였으며 낙하 시험을 수행하여 안전성을 확인하였다. 또한 해상시운전을 통하여 기존의 네트보트는 2,500 RPM에서 속도는 12.0 knot, 예인력은 2,545 kgf 이며, 워터제트가 탑재된 네트보트는 3,200 RPM에서 속도는 26.7 knot, 예인력은 2,011 kgf로 워터제트가 탑재된 네트보트 또한 다랑어 선망 어선의 보조 작업선으로 예인용량 기준에 충분히 만족함을 알 수 있었다.

In this study, a new designed propeller was applied on 24 ton class squid jigging vessel to reduce of fuel consumption. The selected squid jigging boat was under construction at the shipyard to determine the resistance of the hull through the model experiment. The propeller design was carried out by using the experimental data and ITTC procedures. Sea trials were performed by measuring the speed and the horsepower required by the condition of five power levels of engine load, namely 70%, 80%, 90%, MCR and maximum engine power. The speed and delivered horse power were compared between the conventional propeller and the new design propeller. Delivered horse power by installing the new propeller takes 90% engine load at start-up conducted by decreased 9.06%. The measuring speed is increased up to the 0.6 knots in the low-speed range to high range. This study showed that only the design and installation of a new propeller can improve the propulsion efficiency of the boats; furthermore, reduce fuel costs can be achieved at the same time by improving the increased cruising speed.

Fishing efficiency of a trawl vessel can be enhanced by increasing the swept area per unit time, which can be attained either by increasing the mouth size of the net, or by increasing the towing speed. To improve fishing and fuel efficiency of trawl vessels targeting fishes of greater mobility, in which the towing speed is more critical in determining fishing efficiency, we conducted a series of model tests to evaluate the performance of the newly-designed nozzle propeller before installing it in a trawl vessel to verify its towing speed and fuel efficiency in the sea. By conducting further model tests in the experimental basin, we redesigned the propeller of stern trawler to improve the resistance and propulsion performance. Through actual fishing operations, we evaluated the improvement in fuel and fishing efficiency by installing the new nozzle propeller. The trawling speed increased by 0.6kts at the same engine power (RPM), while the engine margin increased by more than 20%. The increased towing speed by installing the redesigned propeller is expected to enhance fishing performance through increasing the number of hauling- and casting operations per unit times, while shortening the towing duration. Analysis of the Catch-Per-Unit-Effort (CPUE) data indicated that the mean CPUE of trawl fishery increased from 3.04kg/m in year 2007 to 6.15kg/m in year 2008, confirming enhanced fishing efficiency by adopting the redesigned propeller.

Trawlers have to a sufficient towing force due to it's characteristics of the high performance. The newly constructed trawler with the conventional propellers shows the sufficient towing force, so that the propeller and engine are optimized. In the 1970s, many trawlers were imported from overseas by Korean fisheries industries. But the engine output degradation with year by year caused the trawlers to decrease the towing speed of the vessels. On the previous studies, the nozzle propeller had not so good efficiency with increasing of resistance in high-speed cruising operation over 15knots. But the trawling operation is just required the higher thrust and towing force, so that the nozzle propeller is very profitable for the it's effectiveness. A new nozzle propeller was designed for the 4,462G/T trawler, Dong-San, operated by Dongwon Industries Co., Ltd. to improve the towing speed, and the model tests were performed. The model ship and model propeller are preciously manufactured and used model tests in basin. The resistance test and propeller open water test were performed for the cases of the half and full loads. The required engine horse power and RPM were evaluated analytically by the speed-power curve, when the trawler was equipped with the nozzle propeller. The results of tests showed that the towing speed 4.85knots on the design load waterline requires the 200 engine RPM and 2,567ps in the delivered horsepower.

Underwater robotic vehicles(URVs) are used for various work assignments such as pipe-lining, inspection, data collection, drill support, hydrography mapping, construction, maintenance and repairing of undersea equipment, etc. As the use of such vehicles increases the development of vehicles having greater autonomy becomes highly desirable. The vehicle control system is one of the most critic vehicle subsystems to increase autonomy of the vehicle. The vehicle dynamics is nonlinear and time-varying. Hydrodynamic coefficients are often difficult to accurately estimate. It was also observed by experiments that the effect of electrically powered thruster dynamics on the vehicle become significant at low speed or stationkeeping. The conventional linear controller with fixed gains based on the simplified vehicle dynamics, such as PID, may not be able to handle these properties and result in poor performance. Therefore, it is desirable to have a control system with the capability of learning and adapting to the changes in the vehicle dynamics and operating parameters and providing desired performance. This paper presents an adaptive and learning control system which estimates a new set of parameters defined as combinations of unknown bounded constants of system parameter matrices, rather than system parameters. The control system is described with the proof of stability and the effect of unmodeled thruster dynamics on a single thruster vehicle system is also investigated.

The thruster is the crucial factor of an underwater vehicle system, because it is the lowest layer in the control loop of the system. In this paper, we propose an accurate and practical thrust modeling for underwater vehicles which considers the effects of ambient flow velocity and angle. In this model, the axial flow velocity of the thruster, which is non-measurable, is represented by ambient flow velocity and propeller shaft velocity. Hence, contrary to previous models, the proposed model is practical since it uses only measurable states. Next, the whole thrust map is divided into three states according to the state of ambient flow and propeller shaft velocity, and one of the borders of the states is defined as Critical Advance Ratio (CAR). This classification explains the physical phenomenon of conventional experimental thrust maps. In addition, the effect of the incoming angle of ambient flow is analyzed, and Critical Incoming Angle (CIA) is also defined to describe the thrust force states. The proposed model is evaluated by comparing experimental data with numerical model simulation data, and it accurately covers overall flow conditions within 2N force error. The comparison results show that the new model's matching performance is significantly better than conventional models'.