Wave Wake - A Rational Method for Assesment

The topic of wave wake, that is, waves generated by the forward motion of marine vessels, is of great interest to vessel designers, builders, operators, government departments and environmentalists. It is becoming of even more importance with the increased use of highspeed craft on sheltered waterways due to the problems associated with bank erosion and the dangers to other users of the waterway. Subsequently, the number of institutions and organisations conducting research within this field around the world is growing rapidly, however, the method of obtaining and reporting the wave height generated by a vessel is different throughout the industry. This is further complicated as the wave height varies considerably due to the interaction of the divergent and transverse wave systems at varying distances away from the vessel. This makes it essential to develop a method by which the major characteristics of the waves generated can be measured and presented in a way that best represents the problems that these waves cause and can be used to directly compare one vessel against another vessel. The results of an investigation undertaken to develop a more equitable means for comparing the performance of different vessels are presented. First, the relevant major characteristics of the wave profile are defined and, secondly, this is related to the transverse location from the vessel's sailing line. The wave profiles utilised within this investigation have been obtained from model scale experiments on a typical hull form.