Many research workers, hydraulics specialists and engineers have used scale models for over a century, in particular in towing tanks. Manned models are small scale models that can carry and be handled by at least one person on an open expanse of water. They must behave just like real ships, giving the shiphandler the same sensations. Physical conditions such as wind, currents, waves, water depths, channels and berths must be reproduced realistically.
Ship models or model ships are scale models of ships. They can range in size from 1/6000 scale wargaming miniatures to large vessels capable of holding people.
Manned models are used for research (e.g. ship behaviour), engineering (e.g. port layout) and for training in shiphandling (e.g. maritime pilots, masters and officers). They are usually at 1:25 scale.
Worldwide, manned model schools have chosen to apply the similitude law of William Froude (1810-1879) for its manned models. This means that gravity is considered to be preponderant over the other forces acting on the hull (viscosity, capillarity, cavitation, compressibility, etc.).
William Froude was an English engineer, hydrodynamicist and naval architect. He was the first to formulate reliable laws for the resistance that water offers to ships and for predicting their stability.
The different aspects of similitude may thus be defined as follows:
Similitude of shape: The model has exactly the same geometric shape as the real ship. This means that all the length (L) dimensions of the real ship are divided by the same factor, the scale factor. The designers of Port Revel chose a scale (S) of 1:25, so:
S(L) = 25 (smaller, hence distance is 25 times less)
It should be noted that in this similitude, the proportions are kept (the ratios between the various dimensions of the ship are identical). This is also the case with the block coefficient. Furthermore, the angles are a length ratio, so they are also identical to the original ones. The scale factors of the areas and volumes are deduced from this, i.e.:
S2(L) = 252 = 625
S3(L) = 253 = 15 625
Similitude of mass (M): The model used for shiphandling training must not only resemble the original but also move in the same way as the original when subjected to similar forces. Consequently, the scale factor for the mass (M) and displacement is the same as that for the volumes, i.e.:
S(M) = S3(L) = 253 = 15 625
Similitude of forces (F): If the external forces on the model are in similitude, like the shapes, masses and inertia, the model's movement will be in similitude. It can thus be shown that the forces (F) must be at the same scale as the masses and weights, so:
S(F) = S(M) = 253 = 15 625
Similitude of speed(V): In agreement with Froude's law, the velocity scale is the square root of the length scale, so:
In continuum mechanics, the Froude number is a dimensionless number defined as the ratio of the flow inertia to the external field. Named after William Froude (;), the Froude number is based on the speed–length ratio which he defined as:
S(V) = S1/2(L) = sqrt(25) = 5 (times slower than in real life)
Similitude of time (T): Time is a distance (L) over speed (V), so:
S(T) = S(L) / S(V) = S1/2(L) = sqrt(25) = 5 (times faster than in real life)
Similitude of power (P): As the power P = F x V, hence S(P) = S(F) x S(V), so:
S(P) = S3(L) x S1/2(L) = S7/2(L) = 257/2 = 78 125
In conclusion, by choosing a scale of 1:25 for the lengths and by complying with Froude's law, the engineers at Sogreah – Port Revel built models 25 times smaller, operating 5 times more slowly, but as the distances are 25 times less, things occur 5 times faster. The ships are 78 125 times less powerful.
While the models must be in correct similitude, this is not enough. Other factors can affect the correct reproduction of the manoeuvres, such as the field of vision, on-board equipment and wind.
40 years' experience have shown that students quickly learn how to control the models just as they do the real ships that they are used to manoeuvring.
Manned model exercises promote good situational and spatial awareness, a lack of which contributes to most accidents and incidents.
Those who have trained on both claim that scale models are complementary to electronic simulators. While manoeuvres with currents, waves, tugs, anchors, bank effects, etc. are reproduced more accurately on scale models, numerical simulators are more realistic when it comes to the bridge environment.
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