Kitchen Rudder
- This rudder (Figure 12.9) is a two-part tube shrouding the propeller and turning
about a vertical axis.
+ For ahead propulsion the two halves of the tube are
opened to fore and aft flow.
+ For turning the two halves can be moved
together to deflect the propeller race.
+ For stopping the two halves can be
moved to block the propeller race and reverse its flow.
Other Devices
- Vertical Axis Propeller: This type of propeller is essentially a horizontal disc
carrying a number of aerofoil-shaped vertical blades. As the disc turns the blades
are caused to turn about their vertical axes so that they create a thrust. When the
ship wishes to turn the blades are adjusted so that the thrust is at an angle. They
can produce lateral thrust even at low ship speed.
- Cycloidal Rudder: Like the propeller, the rudder has a rotor casing with a vertical
axis of rotation. The cycloidal rudder has two blades only, each much deeper than
the blades of a vertical axis propeller. It has two modes of operation:
+ Passive: In this mode the rotor does not rotate continuously but turns through
limited angles so that the locked rudder blades develop steering forces as does a
conventional rudder.
+ Active: In this mode the rudder is operated like a vertical axis propeller to
develop a thrust controllable in magnitude and direction (0-360 deg ).
Rudder area, forces and torques
- Area:
+ Molland and Turnock (2007):
Where:
A is the rudder area
L is the ship length
T is the draught
B is the beam
+ Barrass (2004):
Where T is summer loaded waterline draught
The K(%) values listed include:
Ship Type K(%)
Container ships and passenger liners 1,2 – 1,7
General cargo ship 1,5
Oil tankers and bulk carriers 1,7
Ro-ro ships 2-3
- Forces: Rudders are streamlined to produce high lift with minimum drag. Only
conventional rudders are considered here. These are symmetrical to produce the
same lift characteristics whichever way they are turned.
Where
F : the force on the rudder
A: the cross sectinal shape area
V: the veloctity
α : the angle of attack
+ The constant depends upon the cross section and the rudder profile, in particular
the ratio of the rudder depth to its chord length and the degree of 290 Introduction
to Naval Architecture rounding off on the lower corners.
+ The lift is also sensitive to the clearance between the upper rudder surface and
the hull. If this is very small the lift is augmented by the mirror image of the
rudder in the hull.
+ f(α) increases roughly linearly with α up to the stall angle which is typically
about 35 deg . f(α) will then decrease.
Various approximate formulae have been proposed for calculating F:
In this an allowance was made for the effect of the propeller race by multiplying V
by 1.3 for a rudder immediately behind a propeller and by 1.2 for a centreline
rudder behind twin screws. Other formulations based on the true speed of the ship
are:
The first two were proposed for twin rudders behind twin screws and the third for
a centreline rudder behind a single screw.
- Torques: The first two were proposed for twin rudders behind twin screws and
the third for a centreline rudder behind a single screw.
+ For a rectangular flat plate of breadth B at angle of attack α, this can be taken as
(0.195 + 0.305 sin α)B aft of the leading edge.
+ For a typical rudder section it has been suggested that the centre of pressure for a
rectangular rudder can be taken at K x (chord length) aft of the leading edge,
Where
K = 0:35 for a rudder aft of a fin or skeg; the ship going ahead
K= 0:31 for a rudder in open water
+For a non-rectangular rudder an approximation to the centre of pressure position
can be obtained by dividing the rudder into a number of rectangular sections and
integrating the individual forces and moments over the total area/
Ship Handling
- Handling at Low Speed: At low speed any hydrodynamic forces on the hull and
rudders are small since they vary as the square of the speed. The master must use
other means to manoeuvre the ship, including:
+ Using one shaft, in a twin shaft ship, to go ahead while the other goes astern.
+ Using one shaft, in a twin shaft ship, to go ahead while the other goes astern.
+ Using the so-called paddle wheel effect which is a lateral force arising from the
non-axial flow through the propeller. The force acts so as to cause the stern to
swing in the direction it would move had the propeller been a wheel running on a
hard surface. In twin screws the effects generally balance out when both shafts are
acting to provide ahead or astern thrust.
+ Using one of the special devices described above.
Dynamic stability and control of submarines
- Submarines can travel at high speed, but sometimes their mission requires them to
move very slowly. These two speed regimes pose quite different situations as
regards their dynamic stability and control in the vertical plane.
- The submarine’s static stability dominates the low-speed performance but has
negligible influence at high speed.
- For motions in the horizontal plane the submarine’s problems are similar to those
of a surface ship except that the submarine, when deep, experiences no free
surface effects.
- A submarine must avoid hitting the seabed or exceeding its safe diving depth and,
to remain covert, must not break surface. It has a layer of water in which to
manoeuvre which is only about two or three ship lengths deep.
- At high speed there is little time to take corrective action should anything go
wrong.
- The approach to the problem is like that used for the directional stability of surface
ships, but bearing in mind that:
+ the submarine is positively stable in pitch angle. So if it is disturbed in pitch
while at rest it will return to its original trim angle
+the submarine is unstable for depth changes due to the compressibility of the
hull.
+ it is not possible to maintain a precise balance between weight and buoyancy as
fuel and stores are used up.
Underwater vehicles, general
- Apart from military submarines which are usually quite large there are now many
other underwater vehicles, including:
+ Streamlined vehicles, of moderate size and limited depth capability, for taking
tourists underwater to see the marine life. Generally their handling is similar to
larger submarines but their structural strength need not be so high.
+ Small manned vehicles capable of operating at great depth. In this case, strength
is paramount and the capsule carrying the crew may well be spherical for
efficiency. They are usually provided with lights, cameras and manipulators to
assist in survey of the seabed and wrecks and the retrieval of small items.
+ Small unmanned vehicles operated remotely from a mother ship. Usually the
mother ship is a surface ship but it can be another, larger, submersible. These
vehicles have the advantage that they can venture into areas that would be
regarded as too hazardous for manned vehicles. They are also fitted with cameras
and lights and they may have their own manipulators.
Modifying a ship’s manoeuvring performance
- As with other aspects of ship performance it is difficult to generalise on the effect
of design changes on a ship’s manoeuvring qualities, because so many factors
interact. What is true for one form may not be true for another. Broadly, however,
it can be expected that:
+ Stern trim improves directional stability and increases turning diameter.
+ A larger rudder can improve directional stability and give better turning
+ Decrease in draught can increase turning rate and improve directional stability.
This is perhaps due to the rudder becoming more dominant relative to the
immersed hull.
+Higher length to beam ratios lead to greater directional stability.
+Quite marked changes in metacentric height, whilst affecting the heel during a
turn, have little effect on turning rate or directional stability
+For surface ships at a given rudder angle the turning circle increases in diameter
with increasing speed but rate of turn can increase. For submarines turning
diameters are little affected by speed.
+A large skeg aft will increase directional stability and turning circle diameter.
+Cutting away the below-water profile forward can increase directional stability.