Troy, MI (GLOBE NEWSWIRE). Altair and Artemis Racing together have applied design and simulation technology to help place Artemis Racing in a position to take it all in the 35th America’s Cup.
The design of the daggerboards—foils that lift the boat out of the water to break the drag barrier—will be a critical differentiator between the competing teams as they have a significant impact on a boat’s performance. The Altair and Artemis Racing technical teams have placed a great deal of emphasis on perfecting these composite material structures.
“Technology plays a huge part in the America’s Cup,” said Iain Percy, team manager and on-water tactician for Artemis Racing. “The daggerboard is the appendage that we fly the boat off and also transfers side force into driving force. Millimeters of difference make knots of difference so the optimal manufacturing and design of the daggerboard is absolutely critical.”
The teams have focused much of their effort on optimizing the strength, shapes, and thicknesses, and how water and wind interact with daggerboards using a simulation-driven design approach. To accomplish this, Artemis Racing used several Altair technologies from the HyperWorks suite:
- HyperMesh complex composite material finite element model development,
- OptiStruct for structural analysis and optimization, and
- RADIOSS for nonlinear, large deflection analysis.
Two sets of daggerboards were created to withstand the unexpected challenges from mother nature—one pair designed to perform optimally in heavier winds and waves and another for lighter wind and wave conditions—both designed to rapidly lift the boat from the water with minimum drag.
“The tools that we use are at the forefront of the industries,” said Brett Ellis, lead engineering for daggerboards and rudders. “We are working to tight tolerances and small differences in section shapes on the daggerboards can lead to relatively big gains on the water. We are all pushing hard and pushing the design limits to win that America’s Cup.”
“The technology involved in designing these boats is a critical component to providing a speed edge for the teams vying for the win,” said Uwe Schramm, chief technology officer, Altair. “It was an honor to collaborate with the Artemis Racing design team and apply our design and simulation technologies to create a world-class sailing vessel.”
Artemis Racing represents Kungliga Svenska Segel Sällskapet (KSSS, the Royal Swedish Yacht Club), the fifth-oldest yacht club in the world. Artemis Racing has a multinational crew comprising the most successful sailors and designers in the world. The sailing team members have participated in 12 America’s Cup campaigns and competed in 21 Olympics Games, winning 11 medals, seven of which were Gold. Additionally, Artemis’ engineers, boat builders, and support team have been involved in 64 America’s cup campaigns, including 14 victories.
Altair has released a short film documentary titled “Surface To Air” that was developed to celebrate the work and innovation that is positioning Artemis Racing to win the 35th America’s Cup. The film highlights the impact that simulation-driven design has on the development of the Artemis boat and is available for viewing at www.designthedifference.com.
