Title: Wing in surface effect ship with canard configuration

Authors: Hiromichi Akimoto, Syozo Kubo, Makoto Kanehira

Addresses: Department of Systems Innovation, Graduate School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8656, Japan. ' School of Engineering, Tottori University, 4-101 Koyama-Minami, Tottori 680-8552, Japan. ' Department of Environmental and Ocean Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8656, Japan

Abstract: Wing in surface effect ship (WISES) is a high-speed ship which supports its weight with an aerodynamic wing in very low altitude flight. The ship utilises the enhanced performance of wing in proximity to the water, according to the same mechanism as ground effect. The authors propose a canard-type WISES as a suitable concept for commercialisation. This concept has many advantages for conventional airplane-like configurations, especially for taking off and alighting on water. This paper describes the canard concept, its self-propulsion model tests and the preliminary designs for actual ships.

Keywords: wing in ground; WIG; wing in surface effect ship; WISES; ground effect; surface effect; canard configuration; ekranoplan; self-propulsion modelling; aerodynamics; low altitude flight; commercialisation; ship design; high-speed vessels; aerodynamic wings; rapid sea transport; airplane-like configurations.

DOI: 10.1504/IJAD.2010.031698

International Journal of Aerodynamics, 2010 Vol.1 No.1, pp.3 - 17

Published online: 21 Feb 2010 *

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