Precise motion measurements are essential for vessels equipped with Wind Assisted Ship Propulsion (WASP) systems, supporting performance validation, structural health monitoring, and fuel optimisation.
With accurate real-time data on roll, pitch, heave, and all six degrees of freedom, Norwegian Subsea MRUs give WASP operators the insight needed to understand how the aerodynamic forces generated by rotating cylinders and sails interact with vessel motion, and how those forces propagate into the hull structure. This data is the foundation for optimising WASP system performance, protecting structural integrity, and demonstrating real-world fuel savings.
Motion Reference Units play a central role in unlocking the full potential of Wind Assisted Ship Propulsion systems. Rotor sails and Flettner cylinders generate significant lateral aerodynamic forces that directly influence a vessel's roll, pitch, and overall motion behaviour, and understanding that relationship in real sea conditions requires accurate, continuous motion data.
By continuously measuring vessel motion across all six degrees of freedom, MRUs allow operators and WASP system developers to precisely correlate rotor-generated forces with the vessel's dynamic response. This data is essential for validating performance models, optimising rotor control strategies, and demonstrating measurable fuel savings, voyage by voyage.
Structural Health Monitoring: The cyclic lateral forces introduced by rotating WASP systems create additional stress loads on the hull and mounting structures that must be monitored over the vessel's lifetime. MRU data feeds directly into structural health monitoring systems, enabling continuous tracking of fatigue accumulation, identification of abnormal load patterns, and early warning of potential structural issues before they become critical.
Rotor forces can amplify or interact with wave-induced roll motions depending on wind angle and sea state. Real-time MRU data gives operators visibility of this interaction, supporting active management of WASP system operation to stay within safe stability limits and optimise the balance between propulsion benefit and vessel comfort.
As WASP technology matures and regulatory frameworks around emissions reduction develop, verifiable motion and performance data becomes increasingly important. MRU records provide the objective, time-stamped evidence needed to validate WASP system performance claims, satisfy classification society requirements, and support emissions reporting under IMO frameworks.
"Norwegian Subsea MRUs had the accuracy, the temperature range, and the enterprise-level quality we required"
"They are rock solid. Many Norwegian Subsea MRUs have been running 24/7 inside Miros products for up to eight years without issue, producing real-time data every second."
