TRANSILVANIA

UNIVERSITY OF
BRAOV
Faculty of Mechanical Ingineering
Automotive Ingineering

PROJECT

: Hoovercraft actuation

systems

Name : Mita Sabin Ae1701

A well-designed hovercraft is superior to a boat because it

has less drag and requires less horsepower to operate. A
hovercraft is 100% more fuel-efficient than a boat with similar
capacity or size. Rising fuel prices and shortages are making the
hovercraft a desirable form of transportation. It is conceivable that
someday all watercraft will use the hovercraft principal due to its
many advantages.
Hovercraft ride much smoother than boats because they travel
over the surface of the water, not through it. It travels over water
with no concern for depth or hidden obstacles. As the saying
goes "if it looks good, it is good" refers to operating the
hovercraft over land water or ice, if the path looks relatively
smooth your good to go. Hovercrafts will go against the current of
a river with no speed reduction or decrease in fuel mileage. The
hovercraft also works well in rapids and white water making it an
excellent rescue vehicle.

Safety around swimmers and water skiers is far superior to a

boat since there is nothing in or on the water. The hovercraft will
pass safely over a swimmer or skier. This technique has proven
useful when returning the line to a fallen skier.
Hovercrafts eliminate the need to climb in and out at crowded
docks or piers. No more tying up every time you dock. Simply
drive up onto land, shut off the engine and step out. Your
hovercraft will launch from almost anywhere and does not require
a special launching ramp like a boat. All hovercraft will float in
water and can be docked for extended periods.
You can enjoy numerous year-round activities while investing in
only one craft. Use it as a boat in the summer to go water skiing,
fishing, or camping. In the winter the hovercraft is even more
useful. It will travel over soft or heavy snow. You will never have
to worry about the thickness of the ice you're traveling over. It
makes no difference to the hovercraft.

How it Operates
A hovercraft is an air cushion vehicle (ACV) that flies above the
earth's surface on a cushion of air. An engine that provides both
the lift cushion and the thrust for forward or reverse movement
powers it. It is a true multi-terrain, year-round vehicle that can
make the transition from land to water without touching the
surface. A Thrust propeller provides forward propulsion and
directional control is accomplished via rudders mounted aft of the
Thrust Fan.
The Lift Fan provides air to inflate the "Skirt" to create a semisealed area between the hull and the ground permitting the craft
to "Hover" in ground effect. On the 19XR, lift is controlled by the
lift throttle handle on the left side of the handle bars. This
regulates air pressure and volume in and under the skirt.
Steering is accomplished with moveable rudders mounted
behind the thrust propeller. A horizontal wing acts as an in flight
trim system
To properly operate your hovercraft you must become familiar
with the machine and all of its components. This helps to build a
general understanding of the mechanics and limitations of the
craft.

Principals of Operation
A Hovercraft is a vehicle which travels over any surface on a
cushion of air which is trapped in a chamber under the vehicle.
This chamber is supplied with air under pressure from an axial 4blade lift fan. The top and bottom of the chamber is formed by the

vehicle bottom and the surface over which the vehicle is traveling
respectively. The sides of the chamber are formed by the flexible
skirt. The simplest skirt is the "C" skirt or the straight skirt shown
in Fig. I.
FIGURE I

A vehicle using a "C" skirt must have a round or nearly round

platform shape in order for the skirt to inflate and contain the air
properly. This skirt should have a maximum height of about 1015% the diameter of the vehicle. Any greater height will result in
less stability. There must be a sufficient volume of air supplied to
the chamber so the air escaping from gaps between the skirt and
the surface is replaced. Operating over a smooth surface
requires less air supply than operating over a rough surface.
Operating over grass, especially tall grass requires a much
higher volume of air than over concrete or ice.
Figure II shows the peripheral jet type Hovercraft, which traps air
by means of a curtain or skirt formed by a jet or stream of fast
moving air. This jet of air is aimed down and inward at a 45
degree angle for best efficiency and highest lift.
FIGURE II

The peripheral jet hovercraft was one of the first full size
machines built. It was built in the late 1950's by Sir Christopher
Cockrell in Great Britain. This type of Hovercraft required a large
amount of horsepower for the weight it lifted. Too much power
was required to maintain the air jet. This type of craft was later
fitted with a flexible extension to the air jet to increase the total
height of the hull with a corresponding decrease in the air jet
height and power required, as shown in Fig. III.
FIGURE III

Experimenting with flexible skirts showed that the lifting efficiency

and stability of the craft could be increased by using a bag skirt
system. (Fig. IV.) The vehicle could be built to almost any
platform shape and is simpler to build because air does not have
to be supplied to a jet system all the way around the perimeter of
the vehicle. The air could be ducted directly into the bag and the
chamber. The pressure in the bag could be equal to or greater
than the pressure in the chamber. The greater the bag pressure,
the harder the ride over rough surfaces.

Bag skirts generally give the best stability and the roughest ride.
To get a smoother ride, Finger skirts may be added to (Fig. IV)
the bag skirt or they may be used separately, with a decrease in
the operating height of the hull. Finger skirts are difficult to build
due to the large number of separate fingers that must be
attached. The overall result of flexible skirts is to give greater
operating height with less power required for lift.
With flexible skirts the power required for lift varies from 20 to
over 200 lbs. per horsepower and depends on many factors. In
general a vehicle that has about 100 to 150 lbs. weight for every
horsepower of lift will operate well provided an efficient lift fan
and duct are used.

Sources www.hovercraft.com

www.wikipedia.com
www.fuelcells.org
www.howstuffworks.com