The effect of main dimensions on the preliminary design of motor yachts

Abstract

The design process of motor yachts mainly relies on the experience of designers, who have confidence in the knowledge acquired from designing units with similar hull-form characteristics. However, once a new concept needs to be developed, the acquired experience on a standard platform is no longer sufficient to achieve in a short time a successful design. The design of a motor yacht implies considering multiple aspects of ship hydrodynamics: resistance, propulsion, seakeeping, and manoeuvring. Such factors have been widely discussed individually on different kinds of ships, but an appropriate joint investigation of hulls like motor yachts is missing in the open literature. Therefore, the present paper intends to cover this gap, providing guidelines for the design of motor yachts in a length range between 20 and 40 meters. As a preliminary study, a series of 15 yacht hulls has been developed, starting from a reference hull form. Seakeeping, manoeuvring, and propulsive performances have been evaluated at a reference environmental condition and speeds according to the ISO 22834:2022 guidelines. Such calculations allow for developing response surfaces of the hydrodynamic properties for the series of yachts as a function of the hull's main dimensions. As a final result, the obtained responses allow for identifying the best compromise solutions for the main dimension selection of a new motor yacht in the length range of 20-40 meters.