Design of a Towing System by Multi Autonomous Sailboats

For researchers or administrators of relevant institutions who need to collect hydrological data of a certain water area, using autonomous sailboats to tow floating detection equipment is an energy-saving and convenient scheme for deploying detectors. However, due to the limited pulling force provided by a single autonomous sailboat, this scheme is not suitable for floating equipment with large masses. This paper proposes a new approach for multiple autonomous sailboats to tow floating objects. A system of linear arrangement and connection of two autonomous sailboats is considered an appropriate solution for towing heavy floating objects because of its ability to provide greater pulling force. The main part of the article introduces a new design of multi sailboat towing system that can tow floating objects to sail with or against wind. Repetitive experiments have been conducted at the test site equipped with a motion capture system to find the best strategy to control the sails and rudder, in order to increase the towing system’s pulling force and tacking success rate. Three connection modes are proposed, compared, and tested. The best one is applied to the sailboat’s towing system and improves its performance.