Phil boat launch attempt 2

[Philip Smith]

Following the anticlimax of yesterday's attempt, I've looked at the waterproof box and think it is OK. However, the perspex cover over it had cracked which was probably the crack noise I heard when I tightened the bolts. I've now reassembled with a new perspex cover and won't touch it again before next attempt. So far, no cracks. 

I'm pencilling in Thursday morning, early (before 9am hopefully) as the sea-breeze stops the offshore wind after about 11am, and I'd prefer to launch with an offshore wind, Annoyingly, Monday was perfect conditions all day. 

Good to see those of you who turned up in person, and thanks for all the good wishes. Sorry it was a no-go.

Also to let you know that Colin is hoping to get the microtransat tracking page up and running again, so you can see where the boat gets to before it goes catastrophically wrong. Or you can follow on my website: www.philsboat.info/PhilsBoatTracking.html. Hopefully I'll have some time to update the website with some info about the new boat. Almost everything is still my first one. (A lot of the control software description is still relevant though.)

Phil

[a_lid...@hotmail.com]

Hi Phil,

Did you have any success with launching yesterday?

Alastair 

[Peter Facey]

Boat is going well. Look at Phil's tracking page, drag and zoom in to Lyme Bay, and watch the orange track. Admitedly, a bit confusing. Here is a pruned version.
I am very impressed with ability of boat to sail in a straight line in face of tibal currents. Rockblock reporting seems to stop over night, but boat continues sailing in dead straight line. I am told red arrows give actual direction boat is pointing in at time of report. Phil will be able to tell you more, but I think he may be busy.

[Robin Lovelock on robin@gpss.co.uk]

Thanks Peter - and Brilliant work Phil ! I visited Phil's page earlier but only say the old info - browser refresh needed ?

Anyway - will continue to watch progress in coming days, including from Sicily from 1st to 15th June.

Off to a late birthday get-together now :-)

Safe Sailing !

Robin & Snoopy

www.gpss.co.uk

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[Alastair Lidstone]

Thanks Peter. I had the same issue as Robin. Either wasn’t zooming in enough or it hadn’t refreshed. I can see it now!

Looks to be making good progress!

Good luck Phil!

Alastair

On 27 May 2023, at 11:16, Robin Lovelock on ro...@gpss.co.uk <gp...@compuserve.com> wrote:



Thanks Peter - and Brilliant work Phil ! I visited Phil's page earlier but only say the old info - browser refresh needed ?

Anyway - will continue to watch progress in coming days, including from Sicily from 1st to 15th June.

Off to a late birthday get-together now :-)

Safe Sailing !

Robin & Snoopy

www.gpss.co.uk

-----Original Message-----
From: Peter Facey <goo...@brisk.org.uk>
To: Microtransat <microt...@googlegroups.com>
Sent: Sat, May 27, 2023 9:57 am
Subject: [microtransat] Re: Phil boat launch attempt 2

Boat is going well. Look at Phil's tracking page, drag and zoom in to Lyme Bay, and watch the orange track. Admitedly, a bit confusing. Here is a pruned version.

<20230527-track.JPG>

I am very impressed with ability of boat to sail in a straight line in face of tibal currents. Rockblock reporting seems to stop over night, but boat continues sailing in dead straight line. I am told red arrows give actual direction boat is pointing in at time of report. Phil will be able to tell you more, but I think he may be busy.

On Friday, 26 May 2023 at 21:13:25 UTC+1 a_lid...@hotmail.com wrote:

Hi Phil,

Did you have any success with launching yesterday?

Alastair 

On Tuesday, 23 May 2023 at 18:59:33 UTC+2 Philip Smith wrote:

Following the anticlimax of yesterday's attempt, I've looked at the waterproof box and think it is OK. However, the perspex cover over it had cracked which was probably the crack noise I heard when I tightened the bolts. I've now reassembled with a new perspex cover and won't touch it again before next attempt. So far, no cracks. 

I'm pencilling in Thursday morning, early (before 9am hopefully) as the sea-breeze stops the offshore wind after about 11am, and I'd prefer to launch with an offshore wind, Annoyingly, Monday was perfect conditions all day. 

Good to see those of you who turned up in person, and thanks for all the good wishes. Sorry it was a no-go.

Also to let you know that Colin is hoping to get the microtransat tracking page up and running again, so you can see where the boat gets to before it goes catastrophically wrong. Or you can follow on my website: www.philsboat.info/PhilsBoatTracking.html. Hopefully I'll have some time to update the website with some info about the new boat. Almost everything is still my first one. (A lot of the control software description is still relevant though.)

Phil

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<20230527-track.JPG>

[minij...@gmail.com]

Hello everyone,

Philipp's map brings together all his attempts well, but for those like me who are passionate about the current one, it lacks clarity.
I took his data and isolated them to focus on the "microtransat" attempt.
By opening the attached file in https://kmlviewer.nsspot.net/ for example, you can have more information and therefore questions :-)

In the English Channel there is the current of the tide which should have a huge influence on the positioning of the boat.

If the orientation of the arrows corresponds to the direction of the boat's progress, this should also provide information.

Moreover, Philipp does not publish data at night, is this voluntary? Could it be because it is the period when the tide causes a rapid (or very slow) change in the course?

It would also be interesting to know the wind on the course, the weather sites are numerous with beautiful representations, for example
https://www.ventusky.com/?p=50.3;-4.7;5&l=gust
But I don't know if it is possible to make it display past data.

In the end, congratulations to Philipp, it's a magnificent start and I wish him every possible success.

Only one regret: that he does not communicate more on his boat, on his electronic equipment (type of arduino, helm servo, ...), on the compass used.

It would also be interesting for him to tell us in what condition he recovered his boat near the Gironde estuary lighthouse, in particular, was there water, corrosion in the wires by capillary action such as the 'noted
https://www.ubcsailbot.org/updates/ada-post-return

Regards

fr

[Dicks GMail]

Hi

Yes the are tidal streams in the English Channel (or La Manche to the French).  These can be vary greatly in different location and states of tide.  Phil’s Boat was launch just west of Portland Bill where the currents can be very strong and treacherous at points.  The wind is currently anti cyclonic around a high pressure north of the UK creating easterly winds along The Channel and generally clear skys.  However the stronger sun can generate convection over the land leading to onshore winds.  Phil launched early in the day to avoid the onshore winds but the tidal stream was less favourable at that time so was carrier south and east around Portland Bill.

It doesn’t transmit at night to conserve power but starts transmitting once the sun has increased power levels.

The reporting point arrows on the map approximate to the boat current heading, not course.

Phil’s Boat has now entering weaker tidal streams and the easterly wind is due to continue for a least the next week.

More can be found on http://philipsmith.com/philsboat/Mission.html

Cheers, Dick Bailey

Sent from my iPhone

On 28 May 2023, at 08:05, minij...@gmail.com wrote:



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<8.kml>

[Peter Facey]

Phil can command a course via satellite, and he did that earlier in the trip when the boat was struggling in the Shambles. It is currently unclear if the boat is trying to follow the way  points, or if it has just been commanded to just sail southwest. Either way, it's incredibly straight course is impressive.

The first position report after the night has been getting earlier:
26th: 10:35 BST

27th:  9:20

28th:  6:17

This may reflect better battery charging under very sunny clear skies.

[Robin Lovelock on robin@gpss.co.uk]

Good Morning (UK) All. First, I think the important thing to say is that Phil does a brilliant job in design, construction, and launch of Phil's Boat.

REMEMBER that Colin has not managed to find someone to take over updates to https://www.microtransat.org/index.php

That includes the tracking, and - of course - the simple Team information & Latest News.

Is there a volunteer for that ?  In my opinion it has to be someone the the experience to keep the style of pages identical.

Not difficult, if you are - like me - able to edit raw html since 1995 - BUT I do not have the time. Ideally someone at Aberwystwyth Uni'.

Phil does not have the luxury of helpers, like Team-Joker: Yes Francois, in addition to the Microtransat hosted maps, Peter has

often supported Snoopy with maps that show the GPS track combined with wind and tide. How is your boat coming along ? :-)

Thanks Dick for what looks like the explanation for "quiet periods" in the tracking: Phil will know: lack of batteries to support solar panels.

Or maybe not enough solar panels ? Interesting question for him: what is the total average power drain, in mAH, at what voltage,

for all his onboard electronics ? i.e. GPS, computer(s), servo(s), satcomms, logger ?

On Snoopy's boat is documented on the "Design" page with this important data, as an example: www.gpss.co.uk/rbdesign.htm

Other higher priority things here, and Microtransat related dialogue is sadly being held on other forums.

Take Care

Robin

www.gpss.co.uk - and Snoopy on www.gpss.co.uk/autop.htm :-)

-----Original Message-----
From: Peter Facey <goo...@brisk.org.uk>
To: Microtransat <microt...@googlegroups.com>

https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/microtransat/2c1f75bf-3329-44df-a66d-065b664cb776n%40googlegroups.com

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[minij...@gmail.com]

<<REMEMBER that Colin has not managed to find someone to take over updates to https://www.microtransat.org/index.php

Hello Robin,

Your emails were outside the scope of "microtransat" for a long time.
Glad you're back on track!

I would gladly ask for help to continue Colin's work but I don't speak English except using Google translate.

<<On Snoopy's boat is documented on the "Design" page with this important data, as an example: www.gpss.co.uk/rbdesign.htm

Unfortunately, you fall back too quickly into the self-promotion of your website 

I looked again at the few pictures on Philipp's site and found he was using a STEVAL-MKI197V1, it seems this compass is not tilt compensated.
Literature in the arduino community is restricted
https://forum.arduino.cc/t/connecting-steval-mki197v1-3-3v-board-with-nano/644269

I also saw that he was using an arduino nano, and that he was complaining about the lack of memory for navigation calculations.
There is the Teensy 4.1 but I prefer the esp32 and especially the esp32-S2.

Still, the site does not give any information on the helm servo

fr

[Dicks GMail]

… information on the helm servo …

All I recall of my conversation with Phil is that the rudder servo uses a brushless motor, is in a completely sealed container by using a wireless link to communicate with the ‘computer’ and magnetic coupling to operate the rudder.  This also allows the servo to be protected from shock loads from the rudder.

Sent from my iPhone

On 28 May 2023, at 11:26, minij...@gmail.com wrote:



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[minij...@gmail.com]

Yes, I found:
https://www.microtransat.org/2019_phil_smith_boat.php?fbclid=IwAR3WR4aFuKtL3W0b3bivxInHqyW2sZHYsRaC23kmTuFaLGcqBGtkna0dl_A
This is a https://www.kst-servos.com/produkte/kst-ms-serie/ms-825/
Beautiful beast and whose price deserves such precautions to have a perfect seal, the whole thing is to know if it was effective.
  Colin's site doesn't have the correct compass reference.
It only remains to validate the iridium used, is it https://www.iridium.com/products/rock-seven-rockblock-9603/?

And for the moment the road is followed (see attached file)
Do the directions of the arrows indicate a course against the current?

[Dicks GMail]

> Do the directions of the arrows indicate a course against the current?

The arrow point in the nearest of 15 24° segments (24*15=360) to the compass direction the boat is ‘facing’, it’s Heading. This is unlikely to be its direction of travel. That will be the result of its heading modified by the water current, wind direction, sail and hull dynamics, known collectively as its Track.
So Heading and Track are different and will generally be different. The Heading is adjust to combine with the other factors to sail the desired Track to achieve the plotted/intended Course.

Sent from my iPhone

[minij...@gmail.com]

Fully agree

But since we have no data to have the real cause, there are only hypotheses...
I think one possible reason is that the boat gets a bit fiery at times and trims heavily heeled over and then drifts downwind.
But more data is needed.

By having on board a compass with inclination compensation, one could know the average value of pitch and roll, since it is with these data that the heading can be compensated.

But recovering a compass is very difficult in these times of drones in Ukraine, stocks are exhausted everywhere or prices are soaring.

I had the opportunity to open a compass
https://www.tradeinn.com/waveinn/en/raymarine-tacktick-t060-micro-compass/578719/p
it is a marvel that makes fun of heeling at least up to 30°   because it's the same thing as a classic nautical compass: a magnet in a bath of liquid, only it is surrounded by coils which inform a microcontroller and thus allow it to control an LCD display.

fr

[Philip Smith]

Sorry I haven't been keeping up to date with this conversation, but I'll try to add some information.

It isn't going as smoothly as I hoped, starting from the fact that my boat got swept around Portland by the current. 

The main problem is that the satellite communication hasn't been reliable. It seems to stop overnight, but this is not deliberate and I'm not sure why. It may be something to do with the PV charging current, or it may be to do with the wind and wave conditions. It seems that the boat tries to communicate, but the transfer fails, so won't update the website. The track on the website map just joins up the actual recorded points with a straight line, so details between messages aren't shown (as you can see from the first two points when the boat didn't actually cross Portland as the line shows).

Also as has been said I can send override messages to the boat (when the comms is working). I used this to escape from the east side of Portland by sending a command to sail due south. There are two types of override: a heading override, or a new waypoint override. Both have a time limit of up to 99 hours which is sent in the same message. (I can cancel an override before it times out).

By the way, the pointer direction on my website map is the direction the boat is trying to go. It isn't the actual progress, just where the software has calculated the boat should go. Or the override direction.

After the override to go south escaping Portland, I turned off the override, when the boat went more or less north. I initially thought this was a software error, but on reflection I think it is trying to get back on course, from a long way off-course. Because heading north wasn't very helpful, I sent a new override to head south-west. This lasted overnight as there were no successful communications. 

Then there are a couple of messages whilst the boat was under autonomous control when it is headed slightly north of west. I then send another override to head south west again, to make sure it wasn't going to crash into Devon. Once the override ended (the overrides have a time limit), the boat again headed north as it was trying to get on track again. 

Since this wasn't very helpful, I sent a different override which is to head to a latitude, longitude point. This was partly to check whether the heading software was working, and it seems like it is. The override point is just south of the Lizard, meaning the direction should be almost due west. This is where the boat is heading.

I think the problem overall is that the boat is struggling with the wind strength, and waves. It seems to be making progress in the correct direction, but not communicating. The wind is forecast to be stronger over the next couple of days, so I won't be surprised if communications stop for a while. 

The rudder servo is in a separate waterproof box, connected to the rudder with a magnetic coupling. But a wired link to the CPU. So not totally isolated, as there is the cable gland, but no shaft seal.

I agree that the website is confusing with all the old routes on, so will look at that when I have time. Perhaps I should leave the lines of the old voyages, but remove the points. Or learn more about websites and enable the different voyages to be enabled individually. Also, the colours are a bit too similar, and I can change that.

Thanks for all you interest.

Phil

[Philip Smith]

One other thing: I can also change the frequency of sending messages, so the gap between points isn't necessarily simply just due to the boat speed. So far, some messages are 4 hours apart, some 2 hours, some 1hour and some 30mins. Plus there are missing messages so some time delays are many hours. Getting the boat speed from only the map isn't always possible. 

On the whole, the boat has achieved about 22miles per day. (1mph).

Phil

[Dicks GMail]

Thanks Phil, sorry for my misinformation, I’m pleased you’ve corrected that.  (Just shows I don’t always listen carefully enough.)

Cheers, Dick Bailey.

Sent from my iPhone

On 28 May 2023, at 23:23, Philip Smith <philip...@gmail.com> wrote:

One other thing: I can also change the frequency of sending messages, so the gap between points isn't necessarily simply just due to the boat speed. So far, some messages are 4 hours apart, some 2 hours, some 1hour and some 30mins. Plus there are missing messages so some time delays are many hours. Getting the boat speed from only the map isn't always possible. 

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[Robin Lovelock on robin@gpss.co.uk]

Thanks Phil ( and other guys ). Let's hope that tracking keeps going.

I took a look at the much improved Met Office website for winds through to late Sunday night.

I did some very rough calculations, based in part in pages linked from my Bottle tracking pages.

Good sailing ! :-)

Robin

www.gpss.co.uk

Met Office link

https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/maps-and-charts/wind-map#?zoom=8&lat=51.44&lon=-0.58&map=Rainfall&fcTime=1653968700&model=ukmo-ukv&layer=wind-speed-and-direction&bbox=[[43.992814500489914,-32.12402343750001],[60.34869562531865,24.125976562500004]]

But better links are off the Snoopy page.

Phil's boat on www.philsboat.info

-----Original Message-----
From: Philip Smith <philip...@gmail.com>
To: Microtransat <microt...@googlegroups.com>
Sent: Sun, May 28, 2023 11:23 pm
Subject: Re: [microtransat] Re: Phil boat launch attempt 2

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[minij...@gmail.com]

Little follow-up of Phil's boat in the current weather conditions:
Upload attached file to https://www.windy.com/uploader

fr

[Robin Lovelock on robin@gpss.co.uk]

Thanks Francois. This image in philsb2.gif may be easier than a KML file for some.

Phil's boat's track seems to be consistent with a boat without steering, but let's hope I am wrong.

My earlier images show my guesstimate of the track until Sunday, for a drifter or a bottle.

I'm sure you all know of that excellent work by Educational Passages in USA - just drifters.

I'll use this opportunity to say something nice about Francois for once - instead of jokes about the French. I have already said how some Frenchmen were very important to me: not least George Gourier. Before that, it was guys like Henry at Dasault Electronique & Thompson-CSF.

But I digress: Francois raised the subject of source forge - yes - excellent - I got a QR encoder with Colin's help last year. Better than the one used for Snoopy's boat that worked well at Rottingdea.

BUT, the most important thing that I have to say here is that perhaps, years ago, when I checked out who this guy Francis R was, I mistakenly thought he was younger than he was.

There are some words of wisdom in that posting, and thoughts that are important to me now.

e.g. how to get model sailing boat guys interested in robot sailing boats ?

I suggest by letting them use complete subsystems, such as a GPS Autopilot,

that they can simply plug into their existing radio control boat - to get started on ponds.

They do not need to get into any sort of programming, such as Picaxe, Arduino, or Micromite.

They simply plug Lat/Lons from google maps into code that is already there.

ONE problem for anyone east of Greenwich - my old micromite software, unchanged for 10+ years, does only work West of the Greenwich meridian. Some of you may wish to join the Picaxe forum

https://picaxeforum.co.uk/ - the Active Forum. BUT not if you are already familiar with another platform.

Finally: great if Francois ( and other members ?) will disclose a bit about themselves.

I promise not to call it "Self-Promotion" - but rather "Openess" ;-)

e.g. I was born in 1947 and my career and hobbies are an "Open Book" on www.gpss.co.uk

Robin - and Snoopy on www.gpss.co.uk/autop.htm


This from google translate ...

Merci François. Cette image dans philsb2.gif peut être plus simple qu'un fichier KML pour certains.

La trajectoire du bateau de Phil semble être cohérente avec un bateau sans barre, mais espérons que je me trompe.

Mes images précédentes montrent mon estimation de la piste jusqu'à dimanche, pour un vagabond ou une bouteille.

Je suis sûr que vous connaissez tous cet excellent travail d'Educational Passages aux États-Unis - juste des vagabonds.

Je vais profiter de cette occasion pour dire quelque chose de gentil sur François pour une fois - au lieu de plaisanter sur les Français. J'ai déjà dit à quel point certains Français étaient très importants pour moi : notamment George Gourier. Avant ça, c'était des gars comme Henry chez Dasault Electronique & Thompson-CSF.

Mais je m'égare : François a soulevé le sujet de la forge des sources - oui - excellent - j'ai eu un encodeur QR avec l'aide de Colin l'année dernière. Mieux que celui utilisé pour le bateau de Snoopy qui fonctionnait bien à Rottingdea.

MAIS, la chose la plus importante que je dois dire ici est que peut-être, il y a des années, quand j'ai vérifié qui était ce type Francis R, j'ai pensé à tort qu'il était plus jeune qu'il ne l'était.

Il y a quelques mots de sagesse dans cette publication et des pensées qui sont importantes pour moi maintenant.

par exemple. comment intéresser les gars de maquettes de voiliers aux voiliers robots ?

Je suggère en les laissant utiliser des sous-systèmes complets, comme un pilote automatique GPS,

qu'ils peuvent simplement brancher sur leur bateau radiocommandé existant - pour commencer sur les étangs.

Ils n'ont pas besoin de se lancer dans une quelconque programmation, telle que Picaxe, Arduino ou Micromite.

Ils branchent simplement Lat/Lons de Google Maps dans le code qui est déjà là.

UN problème pour quiconque est à l'est de Greenwich - mon ancien logiciel micromite, inchangé depuis plus de 10 ans, ne fonctionne qu'à l'ouest du méridien de Greenwich. Certains d'entre vous souhaiteront peut-être rejoindre le forum Picaxe

https://picaxeforum.co.uk/ - le forum actif. MAIS pas si vous connaissez déjà une autre plateforme.

Enfin : super si François (et d'autres membres ?) divulguent un peu d'eux-mêmes.

Je promets de ne pas l'appeler "Self-Promotion" - mais plutôt "Openess" ;-)

par exemple. Je suis né en 1947 et ma carrière et mes loisirs sont un "livre ouvert" sur www.gpss.co.uk

Robin - et Snoopy sur www.gpss.co.uk/autop.htm

-----Original Message-----
From: minij...@gmail.com <minij...@gmail.com>
To: Microtransat <microt...@googlegroups.com>
Sent: Tue, May 30, 2023 12:28 pm
Subject: Re: [microtransat] Re: Phil boat launch attempt 2

fr

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[minij...@gmail.com]

My dear Robin,

Even when you answer in the subject you can't help but self-promote your website
No need to try to use google translate for me I know how to do it
By the way my first name is Francis F R A N C I S

Is it really difficult to click on the kml viewer link after having saved the .kml file on your computer and then enter on the website where the kml file is stored on your computer?

Now if you can give me a link to create a web page with an integrated link for kml file I'm interested.
Phil did but his ol.js and ol.css files are compressed and too hard for me to read to edit and use
I don't blame him, it's fair game to protect his work.

The trajectory of his boat shows no signs of a drifting boat, the last course change clearly shows that the boat is under control.
But by his waypoint tracking program, I don't believe it, it's more the result of iridium commands

Having a GPS tracker does not allow you to sail autonomously
First you have to learn an IDE, I tried platformIO and I didn't like it, however Arduino IDE is not perfect and the forum has very competent and helpful people.
In my opinion, we can plan stages and test them as we go along.
Program the microcontroller to receive outputs from an RC receiver, for example 3 channels: rudder, sail winch and command
Provide that if the third channel is in a configuration, commands 1 and 2 are transmitted to the servos.
Add gps reading
Add reading and writing of SD card: reading to know the waypoints, writing to record the track of the route.
So far it's easy
Add the reading of a compass compensated for inclination and not requiring to be recalibrated if there is a power cut: there if I read correctly you need an expensive cmps14, not very available and I have read reviews indicating that the preservation of the calibrations was not at the top.
I'm trying with an mpu9250 but I'm stuck in memorizing the calibration.
If command 3 is active:
mute the transmissions of the RC receiver and create an ation on the bar to go in the desired direction
manage or not a sail winch
manage upwind and downwind gaits

With this we can have fun together

fr

[Robin Lovelock on robin@gpss.co.uk]

My Dear Francis. Sorry but most, if not all, you say, has been done many years before.

Sorry that you are so shy about who you are. I am sure you are very experienced ;-)

Au Revoir

Robin

www.gpss.co.uk

-----Original Message-----
From: minij...@gmail.com <minij...@gmail.com>
To: Microtransat <microt...@googlegroups.com>
Sent: Tue, May 30, 2023 3:41 pm
Subject: Re: [microtransat] Re: Phil boat launch attempt 2

fr

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.

[Philip Smith]

Replying to Francis:

yes the boat's direction is mostly from Iridium message overrides I've sent. And yes it does seem to sail in the direction it is trying to, at least most of the time. (Apart from when trying to head almost directly into wind). I think there is a bug in the auto-route software so I'm commanding it over Iridium messages. Some are heading commands, some are a new waypoint. Both seem to work. But when the boat is left alone to follow the pre-programmed waypoints there are sometimes errors I think.

Regarding compass calibration: I have the calibration values hard-coded into the program so they are loaded in when the program boots (or re-boots). I wrote a program to read and display the instantaneous compass values (all 3 acceleration axes and all 3 magnetometer axes). I observed the values whilst rotating the compass in all 3 axes to obtain the maximum and minimum of all axes, and these are in the program. It seems that the magnetometer scale and offset in the compass are different for each axis, although the acceleration values are pretty good. Without using the calibration values, the heading obtained from the calculations is not at all accurate, and strongly affected by boat heel. I don't think it is possible to auto-calibrate the compass once mounted in a boat as you won't be able to test all the orientations needed (eg upside-down!). I use the STmicroelectonics range of compasses, LSM303. These are easy to use with freely available on-line libraries for the Arduino communicating on I2C. I haven't tried other compasses, but expect they are all pretty easy. 

Since the compass has accelerometers, you can use this for additional features. For example, my program re-boots if the boat is upside-down for over 10seconds. This is useful during testing once the waterproof box is sealed as I can restart the program easily without needing a waterproof switch. 

Phil

[minij...@gmail.com]

Hello Phil,

Thank you for all these details

I will look at LSM303 and what has been published on the web but if you could indicate the libraries used and a link to the place that would be great as well as the supplier of the board.
Regarding your attempt, I think that if you have a programming problem to follow the waypoints, the microtransat being for an autonomous sailboat, it will be impossible for you to approve it.
The weather forecast for the next few days is not easy and a route to return would be upwind.
In order to save the equipment, wouldn't it be wise to come back, test the navigation against the wind in heavy weather and then take advantage of the experience to correct the program and try again later?
But it may already be your idea.
In any case, make a program that fits in an arduino pro mini (if it's still the configuration of the previous attempt): respect and admiration!
The same goes for your sail system based on a boom that can turn around the mast but with springs allowing you to have a progressively stronger resistance as it moves away from the axis. It shows unusual creativity.

fr

[Dicks GMail]

Hi Francis 

There are two classes ‘Autonomous’ and ‘Unmanned’.   The only successful attempt so far was Sailbuoy teams ( http://sailbuoy.no/ ) ‘SB Met’ ( https://www.microtransat.org/2018_sailbuoy_boat.php ) which completed West to East in 79.5 days the ‘unmanned’ class.  If Phil’s Boat did continue in this class, but East to West, it would still be a first but very time consuming for Phil especially if the then continued to Australia as he intends.

Perhaps he’d need a crew rather than single handed unmanned.

Cheers, Dick.

Sent from my iPhone

On 31 May 2023, at 06:33, minij...@gmail.com wrote:

Hello Phil,

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[Dicks GMail]

Hi Francis 

If you’ve not seen these before you might be interested in some of the tests the Sailbuoy team did when developing their boat.  To find them search ‘sailbuoy testing’ in YouTube.

Cheers, Dick.

Sent from my iPhone

On 31 May 2023, at 07:26, Dicks GMail <dick.bail...@gmail.com> wrote:

Hi Francis 

[Robin Lovelock on robin@gpss.co.uk]

Hi Guys. About to leave for the pub, but Phil's Boat doing well towards it's waypoint

AND important - winds are good and towards west until at least next Wednesday

Take Care

Robin

www.gpss.co.uk and Snoopy on www.gpss.co.uk/autop.htm

-----Original Message-----
From: Dicks GMail <dick.bail...@gmail.com>
To: minij...@gmail.com
Cc: Microtransat <microt...@googlegroups.com>
Sent: Wed, May 31, 2023 7:51 am
Subject: Re: [microtransat] Re: Phil boat launch attempt 2

https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/microtransat/FDB45802-0E86-44AB-AF70-C63CDA110D45%40gmail.com

.

[Francis ROUSSEL]

Hello Dicks,
Yes I know for sailbuoy
Thanks for "unmaned" class vs autonomous class

Regards

fr

[Peter Facey]

The direction of the boat arrows seems pretty odd recently. Not sure that Phil can have been commanding such directions.

[Dicks GMail]

Just for reference I checked the tidal stream at the ‘mouth’ of the English Channel, Phil’s Boat current location, steadily rotates in direction clockwise through a full 360° in each 12hr period changing speed back and forth between 1.3kts and 0.6kts as it rotates.

So for example it goes from 1.3kts SW at Low tide (currently 10:00 ish) reducing to 0.8kts NW 3 hours later.  Then by High Tide (currently 17:00 ish) 0.9kts NE, then SE 0.6kts by 19:30 and back to SW 1.3kts by 23:00.

Phil’s boat at best sails about 1kt in the current 18kt NE wind.

So putting these together I think could be producing the variable track we see.  May be the ‘Heading’ arrow may be an instantaneous value at the time of the position report transmission.

Looking ahead the tidal stream strength reduces further out into the Atlantic west of the Bay of Biscay though its direction still vary’s quite a bit, but then so will the wind.

Cheers, Dick.

Sent from my iPhone

On 3 Jun 2023, at 08:41, Peter Facey <goo...@brisk.org.uk> wrote:

The direction of the boat arrows seems pretty odd recently. Not sure that Phil can have been commanding such directions.

To view this discussion on the web, visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/microtransat/c3f194ee-3079-4bf1-98f5-637a022937c5n%40googlegroups.com.

<Capture.JPG>

[Peter Facey]

Possibly. But remember what Phil wrote " By the way, the pointer direction on my website map is the direction the boat is trying to go. It isn't the actual progress, just where the software has calculated the boat should go.".

[minij...@gmail.com]

Given the trajectory, unless Phillip has something to do with it, I'm leaning on the hypothesis that with the wind its boom reminder system causes a weather helm  that does not want to do better than abeam plus perhaps the boom that always with the list drags in the water and still helps to prevent casting the sail.

It will soon be safe from Brittany, we will have to see what happens next.

[Philip Smith]

Update about my boat, 5th June.

There are some problems, and some success. First the success: the boat has travelled about 235 miles from launch site (as the crow flies) and is following the commanded directions pretty well. Although I am only asking it to do what I think it can achieve. Most of the voyage has been under my control via Iridium messages, and not under its autonomous guidance. Both heading commands, and aim-for-lattitude/longitude commands seem to be followed correctly. 

The problems: first is that the autonomous guidance sometimes results in the wrong direction, so I'm not using it (the boat will enter in the unmanned category). Second is that the solar panels aren't charging the battery enough to last much of the night. So during the day the voltage is OK, but drops almost as soon as the sun goes down. I don't know if this is due to a fault in the charging circuit, or just that the rudder is being used much more than I expected, and much more than in the testing pond. Third is that the Iridium communications is erratic with many failed attempts at communication. I guess this is because the boat is rolling around too much so the aerial isn't pointing up for long enough to send a signal. Erratic communication frequency means you can't work out the speed of the boat from the spacing of the arrows on the map. I can look up the emails and work it out, but there isn't enough information on the map.

My strategy is therefore to send commands to plot the route from home. So far I've sent it along the south coast of England as I was considering trying to retrieve it from near Penzance (I was on holiday there last week). I decided against that. Now I've sent it more or less due south, just to the west of Brittany. One reason is that the boat does't go directly downwind very well in a strong wind (Force 4 or greater) so I've been sending it about 45 degrees off directly downwind. Also I was trying to get out of the Channel as fast as possible as the waves are worse than off the coast of France. Not sure if this was useful though. I was also considering beaching it in France, but I've also decided against this as so far (fingers crossed) it is actually sailing pretty fast. 60km some days. Soon I'll head more west as the wind is forecast to move round. (And I need to avoid Spain.) I'm not currently trying to follow the autonomous course (blue dots on my map).

As far as other suggestions go, the boom is very high so doesn't drag in the water until the boat is almost on its side, when it is't sailing anyway. Also the spring system means the wind is spilled as the boom moves out, reducing the side force on the boat, so it shouldn't actually heel over that far, except in a very strong wind when the sea will be so rough it won't be able to sail anyway. Boom dragging was a problem on earlier iterations, hence the reason the boom looks so high. In the test pond (without such large waves) the boat would point and sail about 50degrees off head-to-wind, so the current sailing is consistent with this I think. Things are confused at sea because of currents so it isn't clear how well it would actually sail into wind. But hopefully I'll be able to chart a course where directly into wind isn't needed. If it is needed, then there will be little progress until the wind changes!

Phil

[Robin Lovelock on robin@gpss.co.uk]

Thanks Phil. Good that your tracking is still working : http://philipsmith.com/philsboat/PhilsBoatTracking.html

Thanks also for the detailed report. 

We are still in Sicily. 

Take Care

Robin

www.gpss.co.uk

p.s. sent to others ...

Hi Enrico. The black SOS Gotop pendant tracker I wear now works !

https://110track.com/mod/share/index.php?su=19C8DFC326C0B3CD9CFE594E5308CCAA

This is thanks to my friend Allan at Gotop in Shenzhen China.

Sent: Mon, Jun 5, 2023 4:41 pm

Subject: Re: [microtransat] Re: Phil boat launch attempt 2

https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/microtransat/f624c63a-1651-4dad-b795-351e08f1c4c4n%40googlegroups.com

.

[Dicks GMail]

I think all your various decisions are sound.  Well done the boat and you.

Sent from my iPhone

On 5 Jun 2023, at 15:41, Philip Smith <philip...@gmail.com> wrote:

Update about my boat, 5th June.

To view this discussion on the web, visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/microtransat/f624c63a-1651-4dad-b795-351e08f1c4c4n%40googlegroups.com.

[Oliver epsom]

Well done Phil, looking good! Thanks for the comprehensive explanations.

Olly

To view this discussion on the web, visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/microtransat/f624c63a-1651-4dad-b795-351e08f1c4c4n%40googlegroups.com.

[Peter Facey]

Regarding possible rudder servo power consumption. I gather Phil is using an off-the-shelf brushless servo, but I don't know which. I tested a Savox SB2263MG brushless servo and found that when powered by 5 volts it consumed 41 mA all the time. This was one of the reasons I ruled it out. After the servo has reached any desired position, I  can remove the PWM signal and the servo stays where it is. It still consumes 41 mA, and if I back-drive the servo from the rudder the servo does not attempt to resist the back drive (except due to its gearing). Alternatively, if I leave the PWM signal on, then when I back-drive the servo from the rudder the servo fiercely resists the movement and its current consumption can rise to over 2 amps.

[Jake Anderson]

On 7/06/2023 5:01 am, Peter Facey wrote:
> Regarding possible rudder servo power consumption. I gather Phil is
> using an off-the-shelf brushless servo, but I don't know which. I
> tested a Savox SB2263MG brushless servo and found that when powered by
> 5 volts it consumed 41 mA all the time. This was one of the reasons I
> ruled it out. After the servo has reached any desired position, I  can
> remove the PWM signal and the servo stays where it is. It still
> consumes 41 mA, and if I back-drive the servo from the rudder the
> servo does not attempt to resist the back drive (except due to its
> gearing). Alternatively, if I leave the PWM signal on, then when I
> back-drive the servo from the rudder the servo fiercely resists the
> movement and its current consumption can rise to over 2 amps.

Perhaps if the gearing is stiff enough generally to hold position when
unpowered add a fet/whatever to the power line and kill power to it
totally when you want it shut down.
Hitting truly low quiescent current is hard. 40mA is in the ballpark for
a LED and a microcontroller running.
Like you could make a low quiescent current servo by not having LED's on
it and having the MCU make use of sleep modes and interrupts etc. But
it'd be an exponentially harder bit of programming than what's in them
already.

Having your controller power it on every 5 minutes (ideally with a soft
start/slew rate limited turn on to prevent current surges in capacitors
etc) for 5 seconds or whatever is probably going to be the way to go.
Also means you aren't limited to any particular low power servo you
happen to find.

[Jake Anderson]

An addendum to that. If you have that system you're a stones throw away
from then monitoring rudder power consumption.
I mean you're not going to do anything about it, but you'll know exactly
how broken it is lol.

[Robin Lovelock on robin@gpss.co.uk]

Hi Guys. Checkout the specs of the Acoms AS-17 servo, used for years on Snoopy's boats

- AFTER testing to death in typical use of a full rudder movement every 7 seconds

- for typical MTBF of at least 2 or 3 months.

Not enough for the Atlantic - but usually something else breaks first :-)

Robin & Snoopy on www.gpss.co.uk
Robin & June in Calabria then Sicily again

Here is the link to track us: https://110track.com/mod/share/index.php?su=19C8DFC326C0B3CD9CFE594E5308CCAA

-----Original Message-----
From: 'Jake Anderson' via Microtransat <microt...@googlegroups.com>
To: microt...@googlegroups.com
Sent: Wed, Jun 7, 2023 3:31 am
Subject: Re: [microtransat] Re: Phil boat launch attempt 2

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[minij...@gmail.com]

Hello Phil,

The day saw superb sailing and good transmissions.

I have many qustions
Can we have a photo of the current boat?
- is the boat of this attempt the one that was found near the repaired Cordouan lighthouse?
Has the cause of the loss been identified in the stranded boat?
In what state was the electronics, was the iridium saved?

Thank you for answering it, this is interesting information. Regards

Fr

[Peter Facey]

Just getting into deep water, and crossing where it was in August 2020. Going well.

[Robin Lovelock on robin@gpss.co.uk]

Yes, let's hope Phil's boat gets west of Spain before the winds change: this from "Snoopy" page:

https://www.passageweather.com/index.htm?https%3A//www.passageweather.com/maps/natlantic/mappage.htm

Robin & Snoopy

www.gpss.co.uk/autop.htm

-----Original Message-----
From: Peter Facey <goo...@brisk.org.uk>
To: Microtransat <microt...@googlegroups.com>
Sent: Fri, Jun 9, 2023 9:11 am
Subject: Re: [microtransat] Re: Phil boat launch attempt 2

https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/microtransat/ead3b7f6-b8d4-4937-ae4f-aa047c190a2bn%40googlegroups.com

.

[minij...@gmail.com]

Given the wind in the region: https://www.ventusky.com/?p=48.4;-4.5;5&l=wind-10m
the boat is facing the wind, you should sail either further west or further south

[Robin Lovelock on robin@gpss.co.uk]

Good website Ventusky. Or perhaps sail towards north-west, away from land, & better use of wind ?

Robin & Snoopy

 
Sent: Sat, Jun 10, 2023 9:39 am

https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/microtransat/a977b61d-7a4c-43c9-abbf-43898c21a95cn%40googlegroups.com

.

[minij...@gmail.com]

Tacking and the boat "passes" over its helm at 2:06?
Or lack of rudder?

Or ???

" The direction of the pointer shows the boat's intended heading."

Is it the command which is then compared with the actual heading given by the compass and the rudder operated to match the two?

Phil is very quiet... 

Regards

fr

[Philip Smith]

Last few days have made little progress due to either the wind coming from the south-west (ie directly from where I'd like to sail), or very little wind at all (last 12 hours approx). I use this website for global wind: https://earth.nullschool.net/#2023/06/12/0400Z/wind/surface/level/orthographic=-30.78,41.94,1774/loc=-6.880,46.986

which allows you to put down a marker and see the current wind strength and direction, as well as forecasts up to 5 days ahead. And historical data. Also shows wave height, particulate count and all sorts of stuff. (Northern lights anyone?) It also shows when zoomed to an appropriate level how the depressions are moving across the oceans. 

So over the last few days there has been little progress as I don't really want to head further south (as I might get stuck against the coast of Spain) or further north-west, as that is going backwards. So Im content just to wait out the wrong weather trying to make sure I don't go backwards. 

The forecast wind is improving in both strength and direction, so hopefully more progress will be made over the next few days.

Other things that the messages from the boat show are that the charging is working OK, as the voltage has got back up to 8V or so (max Li battery voltage of 8.4V). Also that the on-board temperature is 40C. So a very pleasant day out in the Bay of Biscay. Unless you want to sail anywhere!

I'm guessing that there is also a significant current going back and forth where the boat is, hence the odd loops in the track when there is little wind. Progress over the last 10 hours has been 9km, so not very fast, but not bad in the current conditions, and in the right direction.

Hope the picture attached OK.

Phil

[minij...@gmail.com]

Thank you very much Phil for the explanation and especially the photo.
We can notice that the fabric of the sail is not of the fragile kind

Regards 

fr

[jrst...@me.com]

Dear Phil,

Congrats on the launch and getting to the start and beyond. Watching with interest ahead of our next launch. Watching that high pressure move slowly north of Cornwall made me wish my next boat was ready. Some of the build is on Twitter (@XAtlantic2) but not as good as I was at updating it, but our boat is very similar to our 2021 attempt that was tracked for 6 months.

I am spending this week at MIT in Boston and spent some time in their Sea Grant yesterday, which gave me some great ideas to add to our next boat.

Good luck. Watching with interest.

Jamie

[minij...@gmail.com]

Hello Phil,

I don't understand the statement

when steering SW the boat seems to be moving backwards

the course does not seem to change

https://earth.nullschool.net/#2023/06/13/2146Z/wind/surface/level/orthographic=-13.02,45.83,1774/loc=-6.880,46.986
For what ? Has the boat received orders? 

The course does not seem to change: is it the effect of a current?

On 13  at 5 p.m. he sails in one direction and he does not find it until 14 at 5 a.m.

fr

[Dicks GMail]

Hi Francis,

Even though Phil’s Boat is out of the English Channel but I believe it’s still experiencing the ~12.5 hr tidal cycle which changes the tidal stream direction so might be the cause of the occasional loops and retrograde movement in its track.  I believe the tidal stream in its current location can vary from 0.2 to 0.8 kts which can make a noticeable to a boat only sailing at about 1kt and I thinks the direction changes in a clockwise direction through the tidal cycle. This Though this will change over time as his location changes.

Cheese, Dick.

Sent from my iPhone

On 14 Jun 2023, at 10:30, minij...@gmail.com wrote:

Hello Phil,

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<phil2.jpg>

[Francis Roussel]

Le 14/06/2023 à 12:56, Dicks GMail a écrit :
>
> Cheese, Dick.

Thanks

I guess that was cheers

because google translate translates cheese for me!  ;-))))

fr

[Dicks GMail]

Oops, … your right.

Cheers 🍻

Sent from my iPhone

> On 14 Jun 2023, at 13:58, Francis Roussel <franc....@gmail.com> wrote:

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[minij...@gmail.com]

Good morning,

Phil has changed course.
For a long time I was looking for how to mix Phil's data and a wind map on site.
Find !

Get the file http://www.philipsmith.com/PHPfiles/createkmlfile2.php
Rename it to kml

Open https://www.windy.com/uploader and fill in Phil's kml file

fr

[Dicks GMail]

Yes I was advised to generate a kml that way.  I then extract any new points and add them to update a copy Phil’s from which I’ve removed the previous attempts for clarity and then display it in google earth.  I’m away from my computer at the moment but intend to check the time between the small northerly loops of the track to see if they coincide with the tidal cycle as I suspect.

I note this morning that Phil appears to have redirected the boat due south. I assume this is to put it on a starboard tack in anticipation of the wind veering to the SW in the next few hours due to Low centred in the Atlantic WNW of it.  According to ‘Savvy Navvy (Elite)’, the app I use that combines wind-tide-marine charts and a mix of several forecasts, the tidal stream continues at 0.5-0.7 kts changing direction clockwise through a 360° every tidal cycle.

Cheers, Dick.

Sent from my iPhone

On 17 Jun 2023, at 07:47, minij...@gmail.com wrote:



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<phil.jpg>

[Peter Facey]

Interesting that one can import KMLs into windy.com . It doesn't like the references to Phil's icons:

 <Icon>
 <href>http://earth.google.com/images/kml-icons/track-directional/track-1.png</href>
 <href>http://www.philipsmith.com/MapSymbols/track-1red.png</href>
 </Icon>
but if one deletes the second <href> in each <Icon> then Google's arrows show up:

(in this KML I also increased the <scale> from 0.3 to 0.5)

[Robin Lovelock on robin@gpss.co.uk]

Thanks Guys. Yes, no surprises on what we observe, due to wind and tidal currents.

These two pictures may be of interest: winds.gif from link on "Snoopy" page,

and philsb.gif from Phils's tracking page - with my guestimates of what we see next.

So far, Phils Boat has had a favourable wind, BUT it looks as if "things are a changing".

Even if it is only the tracking that stays working, that will still be a great achievement ! :-)

Take Care

Robin on www.gpss.co.uk and Snoopy on www.gpss.co.uk/autop.htm

Yes, we watched Phil's boat from Sicily, but now we are back: www.gpss.co.uk/holiday.htm :-)

With the trackers we took with us on test, before use on Snoopy's boat: www.gpss.co.uk/contact.htm :-)

Sent: Sat, Jun 17, 2023 9:45 am

Subject: Re: [microtransat] Re: Phil boat launch attempt 2

[minij...@gmail.com]

Yes the google earth direction icon works well in windy but there is no solution for waypoint icons

I use https://kmlviewer.nsspot.net/ and everything works but there is no wind :-))

[Philip Smith]

Hi to everyone following

comments above have reconstructed my sailing pretty accurately. I tried going south to see if I could make some more VMG as the wind is almost directly head-on to where I want to go (about 220degrees) but it didn't help much and was only for a few hours. I'm still nervous about going east at all in case I get stuck in the Bay of Biscay.  I've now increased reporting frequency to 1/2 hour so I can more quickly try out different headings. I also restarted the program last night just in case there was a bug on some timers (which roll-over after 11 days or so), but this doesn't seem to have changed anything. 

I have put the points into a chart in Excel and it looks like there is a definite E-W current every 12.5 hours. As far as I can estimate, it is equivalent to about 0.1degrees longitude, so about 8km. All very inaccurate, but enough to affect the sailing track significantly as the best speed is only about 2km/hr, and recently much less than this. The NS component looks less than this, probably only 2-3km. My estimate of 8km seems a bit high compared to the tidal speed in knots that Dick has quoted, which would give roughly 5km of movement. But even 5km would be significant.

I'm now heading WNW to try and get into the Atlantic a bit further, hopefully to cross the start line. The forecasts show an odd area with no wind appearing in a few days exactly where the boat is. Although west of that the wind is again SW, so another head-wind. 

I think the boat is still responding to commands, and sailing, but the wind isn't being very helpful and probably the waves aren't either.

At least the Iridium comms is still working most of the time, fingers crossed.

Thanks for all your interest.

Phil

[Robin Lovelock on robin@gpss.co.uk]

Thanks Phil. Yes, I think that any experienced sailor would say, with the winds predicted as they are for the next few days,

you should simply steer to head due west - or West-Nor-West (WNW) might be even better.

But why not keep it simple, and leave it fixed in that direction for several days.

At least you will learn more from what you see happening ;-)

Now off out - track us if you wish on my Gotop SOS on "Contact" page www.gpss.co.uk/contact.htm

BTW I see we used something similar ( but green rather than black ) on the Snoopy video on our Microtransat page.

https://www.microtransat.org/2021_joker_boat.php

Robin

www.gpss.co.uk  

Sent: Sun, Jun 18, 2023 4:07 pm

Subject: Re: [microtransat] Re: Phil boat launch attempt 2

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[Robin Lovelock on robin@gpss.co.uk]

Oh Dear ! There was over 48 hours delay before I received my last posting, sent 1529 GMT SUNDAY and only just received here at 1613 GMT TUESDAY 20 June 2023. I hope this Google Group is not delaying, or even losing, important postings from guys like Phil.

BUT, my two attached pictures philsb.gif and winds.gif show what may be good news: Phil will know.

Phil's boat is from www.philsboat.info

It seems that Phil has let the boat try and steer the same course, to roughly the north-west, so we see what happens.

Looking at the winds, this should be a good strategy for at least the next 24 hours.

More will be learnt, and it seems the best current tactic for the mission.

Thanks Phil, for keeping Microtransat alive :-)

Robin at about 1800 BST = 1700 GMT/UT/GPS Time on Tuesday 20 June. 

www.gpss.co.uk and Snoopy on www.gpss.co.uk/autop.htm

Sent: Sun, Jun 18, 2023 4:29 pm

[Robin Lovelock on robin@gpss.co.uk]

Good News that Microtransat Google Group still working OK. and also that tracking still working on Phil's boat.

Sorry, but my guess, is that whatever Phil or the boat is trying to do ( head to North-North-East ??? )

the track will be determined by the wind. i.e. as seen in the photos attached. Towards Brest after Sunday 25 June 2023 :-)

Well done Phil ! :-)

Robin

www.gpss.co.uk and Snoopy on www.gpss.co.uk/autop.htm

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[Philip Smith]

Hi all,

I'm confused about my boat's performance as it seems to make no progress in any remotely southerly direction, or even west. But seemed to go quite well NNE for a few hours downwind last night. I'm wondering if there is a significant northerly current where the boat is. Does anyone have information about currents in that area as a northerly stream of say 1/2 knot would perhaps explain the lack of progress south. As far as I can tell the rudder is still working, although the sail may not be. However, if the sail is broken (or missing) I would be surprised if the northerly progress last night was so good. There is now virtually no wind according to the forecasts I follow, but there is still northerly progress, so perhaps a current?

I'm tempted to try and return back to a UK beach because of the very unhelpful winds, but perhaps I'm just in the wrong bit of the Atlantic?

Any help in the way of ocean current values from an App, or websites I could look at would be appreciated. Boat is at approximately 46.5N  8.5W.

Phil

[Ivan Krasin]

Hi Phil,

there's this website: https://earth.nullschool.net/#current/ocean/surface/currents/orthographic=-8.50,46.50,4849/loc=-8.500,46.500

Note: if you click on Earth menu in the bottom left corner, there are options to see wind / current / waves and also change the date from Now to the future.

I am not sure how accurate the data is, so other suggestions are very welcome.

krasin

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[Dicks GMail]

(Resending this Phil as I forgot to include the group and it might interest others. Sorry)

I think I mentioned I use ‘savvy navvy’ to get data on currents (Tidal Streams). It’s designed for mobile devices (though you can display it on your PC with the aid of ‘BlueStacks App Player’) and intended for full size sailing. If you subscribe, as I do, to the Elite edition (£89 per year, but they do offer a free trial) you get Tidal streams visual overlay’. If you select Routes and enter the boats coordinates (as if the was your first WP). Use the right hand icons to display wind and currents (chevron icon) the current direction are shown on the screen as black arrows and the wind as moving coloured points. If you then select Tides and select a point near the boats point (blue dot) then a purple drop pin is shown with chevrons pointing in the currents direction and just below it the speed (in the units you’ve set in settings) and below a tidal chart is shown for that location. If you move the point on that forward in time you’ll see the forecast changing tidal direction and strength change on the map display. I’ll put a screen shot or two below.

It shown that the boat has had a Northerly flow at times but it’s all quite dynamic so would require frequent watching to see the full picture. I haven’t been watching all the time and as you can’t go back in time more than an hour or so I can’t say what the general pattern has been.

Check it out:
https://savvy-navvy.app.link/e/tellafriend?utm_content=9a90858b-386c-49bb-a8d7-9a7d8b75752e

Here’s the screen shots I mentioned above. I keep going on about this only because the environment your directing the boat through remotely is so dynamic I think it might be the best tool to guide navigating.
You’ll see I’ve used the boats coordinates from 21:21 tonight. But the tidal streams and winds are what was happening later when I took the screenshots (see time in top left corner). I also included screenshots after rolling to 03:50 to show how you can use it to anticipate what the tidal stream is forecast to do.

[Alastair Lidstone]

Hi Phil,

I’m really enjoying following your boat and thanks for keeping us informed on the progress. Previously you mentioned that the arrows on your map show the direction the boat has been told to travel and that’s showing a NE direction. So is it not doing what it’s been told? Or have I misunderstood?

My parents live in Brittany close to Cameret. If you are looking for somewhere to beach the boat. I’m sure they would be willing to recover it. 

On a different note, I’ll be holidaying very near to Cordouan lighthouse in July. I’m not sure your first boat will fit in the car without leaving one of my kids behind, but I might be able to transport your boat closer to home if that’ of any use to you.  

Alastair

On 22 Jun 2023, at 03:08, Dicks GMail <dick.bail...@gmail.com> wrote:



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Cheers, Dick.

Sent from my iPhone

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[Peter Facey]

As miniji reported upthread, one can import KMLs into windy.com . Windy has option to display "currents" and "tidal currents". They come from pretty global models. They do say if you subscribe you can get more local modelling. Here is Windy "currents" now:

I find this presentation easier to understand than Dick's more professional app.

[Robin Lovelock on robin@gpss.co.uk]

Thanks Guys, particularly Phil. The tide ? This old link may help educate some: www.gpss.co.uk/rbqanda.htm 

Remember ( I think Peter mentioned it ) that the tide cycles, so if you look at boat positions even 12 hours apart, it will cancel out.

I followed that link showing wind ( see atached nullsch ) - seems to be winds there weeks ago ???

Good that Phil has some useful friends on this Group :-)

Robin

www.gpss.co.uk and Snoopy on www.gpss.co.uk/autop.htm

Sent: Thu, Jun 22, 2023 8:30 am

Subject: Re: [microtransat] Re: Phil boat launch attempt 2

[Philip Smith]

Reply to Alastair

The arrows do point to the intended direction: I sent it NNE to check whether I actually have any control over the boat still. It seems I do as it did go NNE. However, it won't actually make any useful progress west or south, which are into the wind. So it looks like the boat isn't able to head into wind much at all, but is under control going downwind. 

Regarding Cordouan and Brittany: I have sent emails to Cordouan but not had any reply after a week, which is odd as previously they were very responsive. So I'm not sure what is going on there. I am on holiday soon at Ile de Re (near La Rochelle) so could go down myself by train if I get any replies from the lighthouse. If I decide to return the boat home I'd rather aim for UK as I know which beaches I could likely land on and avoid rocky areas. I don't know what degree of control I would have, and Brittany seems rather too rocky to attempt a landing. Thanks for the offers though.

I've just sent a new message to head due west as the wind is more from the south now. I'll see how that goes. 

Phil

[Robin Lovelock on robin@gpss.co.uk]

Hi Guys. Here is the latest wind prediction, and my updated guestimate of position on philsb.gif

updated since last Wednesday. So far, it seems to be moving exactly as I expected - downwind.

Best guess now, is that, as the wind veers towards the East tomorrow, Sunday 25th June 2023,

the boat will head towards Brest, but then, as wind shifts more, will probably make an uncertain path

along the coast, south-east, MAYBE even as far as Bordeaux - but LOTS of stuff will effect it,

including tidal current, islands, rocks - and fishermen of course ;-)

Great work Phil - let's hope the tracker keeps going ! :-)

Robin

www.gpss.co.uk with Snoopy on www.gpss.co.uk/autop.htm

Sent: Thu, Jun 22, 2023 2:39 pm

[minij...@gmail.com]

Arome is a very fine instrument
https://www.meteociel.fr/modeles/arome.php?ech=6&mode=103&map=0
An animation over the next few hours is interesting

fr 

[Robin Lovelock on robin@gpss.co.uk]

Thanks Francois. Yes, Arome looks like a good alternative web site.

I attach a screen shot of that, showing where Phil's boat seems to be - south of Cork in Ireland and west of the peninsular south of Brest.

Also the latest position seen on philsboat.info which seems to be almost static for last few report.

The position is exactly where expected, assuming movement mostly based on wind, with temporary effects due to tidal current.

We should see the boat being blown by the wind towards that peninsular south of Brest, then along the coast towards Bordeaux.

BUT, maybe there is some "human intervention" explanation for the boat not moving ? We should know within hours.

It prompted me to look at marinetraffic.com and, maybe a coincidence, but there's a "pleasure boat" near that position ? :-)

Thanks Phil for keeping the Microtransat forum alive :-)

Robin at ~ 1038 BST UK = 0938z GMT/UT/GPS Time Sunday 25 June 2023

www.gpss.co.uk and Snoopy on www.gpss.co.uk/autop.htm 

Sent: Sun, Jun 25, 2023 8:52 am

Subject: Re: [microtransat] Re: Phil boat launch attempt 2

fr 

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[minij...@gmail.com]

Since this morning change of course, if we are to believe windy there is wind and Phil is sailing on the reach
We can see the progress by opening the attached file on
https://kmlviewer.nsspot.net/  Too bad there is no scale on the map (only two more lines of code!)

https://www.windy.com/uploader

Well done Phil!

fr

[minij...@gmail.com]

Convert to GPX or lose the beacons indicating the day and time but we have the scale

https://www.mygpsfiles.com/app/

[Philip Smith]

To those following my boat:

I've decided to try and return home, to see why it is sailing so badly and hopefully learn about what has survived well, and what badly. That is why the directions are northerly. Due to the very poor sailing, it seems I can only go downwind plus or minus about 60degrees, so am trying to make the best of the winds and avoid Brittany. Forecasts are not good though as there are some days of due northerly winds coming up, so I'll try and keep west of Brittany even if I get north of it. Then hopefully there will be some normal SW winds that can send me back to the UK south coast.

Fingers crossed for a successful return, and then perhaps another attempt later in the year if I can improve it.

Phil

[Robin Lovelock on robin@gpss.co.uk]

Great Stuff Phil ! This morning I saw that your boat had managed to get further north than expected,

and it looks like you may get north of Brest and into the Channel. I've updated the two images philsboat.gif

and winds.gif - not sure if your site has the latest position - since it looks similar to what I saw hours ago.

i.e. due west of Brest, and that northern peninsula, and maybe 15 degrees west of due south from your waypoint.

BUT it clearly shows that the boat must be steering, rather than simply drifting, like a bottle, on the surface :-)

I recall that the surface water drifts at about 6% of wind speed, so, for 20 mph/knots that's about 1.2 mph/knots downwind.

Dunno what your sailing speed is, and if you are simply steering, without compensation, but it's doing well ! :-)

Looks like, as you get futher north, wind tomorrow will help your journey into the channel - and home to Blighty ? :-)

Robin

www.gpss.co.uk and Snoopy on www.gpss.co.uk/autop.htm

Sent: Mon, Jun 26, 2023 6:23 pm

Subject: Re: [microtransat] Re: Phil boat launch attempt 2

--

[Alastair Lidstone]

Great effort Phil! Hope you manage to get the boat back home. 

Alastair

On 26 Jun 2023, at 19:47, Robin Lovelock on ro...@gpss.co.uk <gp...@compuserve.com> wrote:



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<PHILSB.GIF>

<WINDS.GIF>

[Robin Lovelock on robin@gpss.co.uk]

That's Right Alistair - Great Effort Phil. Sorry to correct my earlier mistake saying water moved 6% when it was 3% of wind speed.

e.g. for 20 mph/knot wind, surface water moves at about 0.6 mph/knots downwind.

I also see values of sailing speed - but Snoopy's boats have more sail area.

Below is an extract from my old "QandA" page www.gpss.co.uk/rbqanda.htm It can be chopped out on the next posting :-)

Robot boat behaviour: will a compass-steered boat be swept by the tide ?

The short answer is "yes", and so compass-steering does not stop us considering the tide, when choosing when and where to launch.

We are begining to have a better understanding of how our "GPS-Only" steered boats will behave in a strong tide, and in September 2014, while on holiday, this picture and words were added to the blog: ... If we can predict the behaviour of Snoopy's boat, for particular wind speed and direction, and the changing tidal current speed and direction, we are more likely to avoid mishaps like landing on the Isle of Wight !

On the right is a picture which tries to explain some of the things we have learnt in recent years. e.g. a bottle, just drifting on the surface, will move at about 3% of the wind speed, downwind, and will also move with the tide. So if the wind is from the north, and the tide is flowing west, the bottle will move to the West-South-West, in a direction that varies with the tide. The bottle will progress south at 0.3 mph (3%), regardless of what extra velocity the tide gives it. ... The advantage of a compass-steered boat, in this situation, is that it can simply point south, and make it's sailing speed, of perhaps 1.5 mph (15% downwind), even though the tide will carry it even further in the east-west-east direction. Therefore, a compass steered boat will need even more condideration of strong tide than our current and past GPS-only systems.

The third example here is for our GPS-only steered boats. We are still quantifying at what combination of tide speed and wind speed, the "tide wins". Sailing speed, for our boats, seem to be about 15% of wind speed, when sailing downwind, and nearer 10% when sailing cross wind.

A little more thought, and schoolboy trigonometry, enables us to estimate roughly, when the GPS-Only autopilot will be "overcome" by the tide. You may recognise a "velocity triangle" on the right. The resultant speed and direction of the boat is the combination of it sailing through the water, and the tidal current. If I remember Pythagoras correctly, Vs = SQRT( Vt*Vt + Vb*Vb ) or - more usefully, Vt = SQRT ( Vs*Vs - Vb*Vb ).

If the boat's actual speed slows down to near 0.1 mph/knot, the GPS will not give accurate speed and direction of movement. This is why Snoopy usually drifts to the bank, when on 24/7 test, and if the wind drops.

This means we can do a rough calculation of how fast the tide must move to "win". Suppose the sailing speed is 1.5 mph, then Vt = SQRT ( 2.25 - 0.01 ) = a "teensy weensy bit less than 1.5mph". i.e. for all practical purposes, we can say that the boat should sail straight towards it's destination, until the tidal current speed approaches the sailing speed.

We can also calculate the effect of the tide, on the forward speed of the boat, seen on the SPOT map. Suppose the boat is sailing at 1.5mph through the water, but the tide is flowing at 1mph: the actual speed of the boat, Vb = SQRT (1.5*1.5 - 1*1) = SQRT(1.25) = about 1.1mph !

So, in conclusion: we would expect our GPS-Only boats to sail in a straight line, towards their destination, until the speed of the tide approaches the boat sailing speed. Also: the speed of the boat, towards it's destination, will decrease. This seems to match what we have observed, over the years, and may help us "guess better" the behaviour of our boats. Real conditions are obviously not so simple: e.g. the tide may not be at right-angles to the boat's intended direction, and things like wind and sailing speed may be less predictable than the tide.

Sent: Mon, Jun 26, 2023 6:52 pm

[Peter Facey]

If Phil manages to navigate his boat back home, I think it will be a first for microtransat.

[Philip Smith]

I'm thinking that is a very big IF though!

By the way, does anyone have a suggestion on the best beach to try and land on to minimise damage to the boat? Given the poor ability to sail anywhere other than downwind, it looks likely to end up being blown onto the shore, along with significant waves and surf. Bad news for trying to land a small boat. Where I launched on Chesil beach looks promising, but perhaps a shallower beach where I can wade out and catch it before it hits land, or even go out on a surfboard or canoe. Alternatively renting a fishing boat and trying to intercept it out at sea would be best, but what is the chance of finding it?

Any suggestions welcome. 

Phil

[Colin Sauze]

if you're going for bringing it ashore then I would aim for a sandy beach. Rocks, even small ones can easily damage a boat. There aren't too many contenders on the South coast of South West England. Perhaps Carne, Pentewan, Carlyon bay or Paar sands in Cornwall or Strete Gate, Dawlish Warren or Exmouth in Devon. Of these Dawlish/Exmouth might be the best bet as its the longest and therefore easiest to hit.

Other's have managed to recover boats at sea. I'm always amazed that they've managed to find something so small! Depending on how much control you have you could try getting the boat to sail in a circle or figure of 8 pattern to stay in roughly one place while you recover it.

Colin.

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[Dicks GMail]

It does appear that controlling the boats approach and aiming for a particular beach will be dependant favourable winds especially on the days and hours immediately beforehand. A successful landfall will then ultimately depend on the time of day, sea state at that moment, the weather and the point in tidal cycle. In my experience retrieving our ‘Woodstock’ following tests and Robins ‘Snoopy’ following failed launches success all comes down to the final yards and how it’s caught by the last wave or two. Shallower beaches can make waves break further out. Then the mast will be vulnerable should it broach and a roll. Wading out beyond breakers can be fraught, if not impossible, as is moving quickly even a yard or two to one side or the other to catch it.

So a lot of uncontrollable variables. Picking up by boat offshore would seem to increase the control over the situation though the challenge as you say would be finding it.

This could be improved if the reporting frequency was increased in the last few hours prior to landfall though battery power could be an issue.

Is that possible Phil?

Sent from my iPhone

> On 26 Jun 2023, at 22:14, Philip Smith <philip...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> I'm thinking that is a very big IF though!

[Robin Lovelock on robin@gpss.co.uk]

Thanks Guys. I attach relevant pictures particularly pb270623.gif - is there a delay before position appears on www.philsboat.info ?

I think Phil should stick with heading as he is now, aiming at North-West (?).

The key is obviously the tracking, but each hour's progress makes it more likely the boat will progress eastward.

If the tracking stops, our main clue on position will be WIND - and, of course, (temporary) tidal current.

I'm CCing several guys who might help - in a week or two if lucky ?

e.g. John Merrix at Lymington with "Hot Lemon" - high speed rigid inflatable.

Not unlike those used by Royal Marines - but no need for them yet ;-)

e.g. Stuart Quarry ( www.gpss.co.uk/onwater.htm ) knows a few useful guys ? :-)

I'm tied up today with a funeral for ex-EASAMS workmate Vic Piercey ( nearly made 102 )

but would not be surprised if we meet up with guys interested in this.

I hope to hear Phil's reply and see boat's latest position late tonight.

Take Care

Robin at ~ 1005 BST ( 0905 GMT/UT ) Tuesday 27 June 2023

www.gpss.co.uk and Snoopy on www.gpss.co.uk/autop.htm

That relevant wind and tide stuff on www.gpss.co.uk/rbqanda.htm

Sent: Tue, Jun 27, 2023 1:28 am

Subject: Re: [microtransat] Re: Phil boat launch attempt 2

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[Robin Lovelock on robin@gpss.co.uk]

Stupid Robin - should have said "heading North EAST " ! :-)

Will be good to hear how often and maybe when position updated on  www.philsboat.info ?

Robin at ~1031 BST = 0931 GMT/UT

Sent: Tue, Jun 27, 2023 10:05 am

Subject: Re: [microtransat] Re: Phil boat launch attempt 2

Thanks Guys. I attach relevant pictures particularly pb270623.gif - is there a delay before position appears on www.philsboat.info ?

I think Phil should stick with heading as he is now, aiming at North-West (?). <- North-EAST !

[Philip Smith]

To answer Robin's question: no there isn't a delay on the website. The messages from the boat are directly sent to the website map every 2 hours (at present, but this can be changed). The only noticeable delay to anything is that if I change the boat heading, this gets accepted by the boat at the time of the next transmit message, and only displayed on the following message. So there is 2hours on the new heading before the pointer changes to show the new heading.

I can increase the frequency up to a message every 30 mins, so for an intercept at sea I should have a reference point well within a mile of the actual boat, and probably much closer depending on its speed and predicted trajectory. Perhaps only a few hundred metres. I can also send it a lat/long point to aim at, so it should try to stay in one place if I tell it. But it probably won't be able to as it will need to sail into wind.

Phil

[Robin Lovelock on robin@gpss.co.uk]

Thanks Phil. Every 2 hours sounds perfect, for at least the next few days.

Not long back from the Funeral of late Vic Piercey, nearly 102, who worked for me at EASAMS.

It turned out that his active service with RAF (Signals) started well before WW2 in Paris, France,

then many theatres of war, including Europe, Africa, India, Australia, Borneo, etc.

In time, a page for Vic may get linked from "EASAMS" on www.gpss.co.uk/easams.htm

Off Topic ? Not exactly - don't forget all the technology was, and still is - pioneered in "Defence Systems"

and that Microtransat was conceived by Yves at the French military naval academy - and those Yanks on the other side of the pond ;-)

Too busy to update the Snoopy blog pages, but the servo reversers arrived, and may get reported in due course.

Snoopy SPOT tracker worked nicely today, to Claygate and back.

Keep up the good "work" Phil ! :-)

Robin

www.gpss.co.uk and "Snoopy" on www.gpss.co.uk/autop.htm

Sent: Tue, Jun 27, 2023 3:52 pm

.

[Robin Lovelock on robin@gpss.co.uk]

Sent: Tue, Jun 27, 2023 7:29 pm

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[Robin Lovelock on robin@gpss.co.uk]

How about this "Cunning Plan" from my friend Baldrick - I'm sure Phil knows him :-)

See attached Philplan.gif 

i.e. continue sailing current path, until inside the waypoints of your route.

Why inside ? So closer to English coast if winds turn bad towards France.

Also, will be easier to see the track, not confused by earlier missions.

I've shown it turning towards somewhere like Boscombe, but depending on wind conditions,

and how far you want to travel, how soon get the boat, you might turn towards land earlier.

e.g. Chesil Beach; or even later. e.g. Brighton, and that Night Club popular with the Royal Marines - in 2015 allegedly :-)

Just an idea :-)

[Peter Facey]

Phil wrote " Due to the very poor sailing, it seems I can only go downwind plus or minus about 60degrees". I was just looking back at the last data I had from our boat, Woodstock, albeit tested in the less than open conditions at Weston in Southampton Water (because we haven't dared let the boat loose in the Channel yet!). This dates from 2019 because we've been knocked out by covid and other family things.

The chart below shows wind blowing from 0 degrees and, in red, boat Speed over Ground from GPS. Basically it can't sail closer to the wind than 60 degrees (=120 degrees from downwind). I think the SoG is in knots. This data may be distorted by currents.

[Peter Facey]

[Robin Lovelock on robin@gpss.co.uk]

Thanks Peter. Let's not let the same "60 degrees" confuse - I think Phil is sayiing 60 either side of downwind.

I think this is enough for the Microtransat Challenge, but the main disadvantage of not being able to tack upwind,

is good testing on a lake, or any bit of water, simply going through a few waypoints, to complete a "circle".

BUT now the latest news - progress of the boat - from www.philsboat.info and updated images attached.

The boat has made good progress, but now we have a strong wind blowing towards Brest, and this continues

until at least tomorrow, Thursday 29 June 2023, so we will see the half expected problem.

BUT hopefully, even if Phil leaves the boat heading north-north-east (NNE) ? - it may succeed.

Good if "Baldrick's Cunning Plan" can be put into action :-)

Robin at 1020 BST = 0920 GMT/UT/GPS Time Wednesday 28 June 2023

www.gpss.co.uk and Snoopy on www.gpss.co.uk/autop.htm 

-----Original Message-----
From: Peter Facey <goo...@brisk.org.uk>
To: Microtransat <microt...@googlegroups.com>
Sent: Wed, Jun 28, 2023 8:40 am
Subject: Re: [microtransat] Re: Phil boat launch attempt 2

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[Robin Lovelock on robin@gpss.co.uk]

Hi Guys. The attached pictures provide an update and Phil may wish to modify the NNE heading to NE or even ENE for the next few hours - depending on wind, expected to shift favourably within hours. This link may be useful: https://www.xcweather.co.uk/forecast/lizard based on that (used for Bournemoth) on Snoopy page.

Note - Yahoo/AOL have made a major change to the user interface, after it being relatively stable for years, so I hope I can attach those important images, including xcwind.gif and updated philplan.gif - instead of all those standard "dumbed down" images ... should be OK.

This was written based on seeing Phil's Boat an hour or two ago, crossing the path of that earlier mission. The limitation of 60 degrees sailing, either side of the wind, is included, and that may influence Phil's tactics, day by day, looking at what I think is a better prediction of the wind. That way, exploiting the wind, he may choose to "go with it slightly" to make progress up the channel. When it shifts more eastward, or even north-eastward, he can then try an steer closer to the English Coast - away from those nasty French - sorry Francois, but I was simply quoting my expert sailing friend Stuart Quarry from that Cowes visit in http://www.gpss.co.uk/onwater.htm :-)

Anyway, it is great that Phil's boat has managed to fight the wind as well as it has, and give the chance to execute Baldrick's cunning plan ( google Baldrick and/or Black Adder for those who need to understand ;-)

We are all learning a great deal from Phil's mission - keep up the good work Phil ! :-)

Robin at about 1425 BST UK = 1325z GMT/UT Thursday 29 June 2023

http://www.gpss.co.uk and Snoopy on http://www.gpss.co.uk/autop.htm

[minij...@gmail.com]

Robin (I don't call you Rouge Gorge) so please call me Francis please...

Also on https://kmlviewer.nsspot.net/ the attached file is more readable.

"those nasty French" ??? I have not seen any fortified defenses in England, however there is no shortage of fortifications in the bay of Morlaix, for the town of Saint Malo, Mont Saint Michel, in Cherbourg, etc... What is this for? ;-))

fr

[Robin Lovelock on robin@gpss.co.uk]

Sorry Francis - I do not mind being called Rouge Gorge="Red Throat" :-)

Some of my Italian friends call me Petit Rosso : 

Good to see that :-)) from you at the end :-)

Yes, I look again at that link to the kmlviewer, but just saw the startup map in Pacific.

But it prompts me to update those images with latest position.

Phil is obviously still pointing the boat NE or NNE - his decision.

But I think pointing it due East (E) or ENE might be good, for at least a day or two.

By coincidence there is a French Connection with an old friend and colleage

whose funeral I went to yesterday http://www.gpss.co.uk/vic.htm

linked from near end of my "EASAMS" page http://www.gpss.co.uk/easams.htm

Vic Piercey, served with RAF from before start of World War 2 - starting in France & Paris.

You may find some of the words from his son Mike about his time in France amusing.

Yes, few know that General De Gaule, and many French officers, came to Sandhurst,

near Camerley, and that "Barossa Operation" area in the war,

as Americans like General Eisenhour (however spelt ) came to Sunninghill

bottom of http://www.gpss.co.uk/johnman.htm

Much of the above is "off-topic" but the attached pictures are not :-)

I wonder if Phil decides to stick with NNE regardless of wind ?

Every day is useful, since it gives time for more people to prepare to help.

But thanks Phil for keeping Microtransat alive, and teaching lessons to us all.

What to do, and what not to do.

Robin at about 2135 BST UK ( 2035z GMT/UT/GPS Time ) Thursday 29 June 2023

http://www.gpss.co.uk and Snoopy on http://www.gpss.co.uk/autop.htm

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[Robin Lovelock on robin@gpss.co.uk]

Hi Guys. Two pictures show Phil's Boat making good progress,

and wind good, towards the east for the next 7 days,

then blowing towards the English Coast :-)

Those looking at winds can choose Lizard, or further east.

I don't think there will be much difference over that distance.

Obviously, close approach to land will effect wind and tide.

But it should not be too difficult to guess progress.

I see Phil has kept it pointing North East rather than due East or East-North-East

which I think would give more rapid progress while we have favourable conditions.

Well done Phil's Boat ! :-)

Robin

http://www.gpss.co.uk with Snoopy on http://www.gpss.co.uk/autop.htm

and Phil's Boat on http://www.philsboat.info - then look at map :-)

[Alastair Lidstone]

Hi Phil,

Amazing to see the progress you’re making. Any idea yet on how you will recover the boat?

Alastair

On 1 Jul 2023, at 00:08, Robin Lovelock on ro...@gpss.co.uk <gp...@compuserve.com> wrote:



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<PHILPLAN.GIF>

<XCWIND.GIF>

[Robin Lovelock on robin@gpss.co.uk]

Hi Guys. This is where topics overlap. Yes, great to see Phil's Boat making good progress.

As reported on his map page of http://www.philsboat.info but attached images may help.

There is also a "French Connection" for Francis, included in the video just uploaded.

Anyone interested in Pascal Granger and Ambulances in France will quickly find him ;-)

Remember this was all decades before it became commonplace in every walk of life.

I'll end with the link to the new youtube video and it's description.

Remember that that same small tracker can be used on robot boats - and has been ;-)

Robin

http://www.gpss.co.uk with Snoopy on http://www.gpss.co.uk/autop.htm

New Youtube video ...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gxZ8GjcHWEo&t=190s 

is a 30 rough cut video which is mostly the photos shot over several days, leading up to Monday 3rd July 2023, when Michelle Lovelock was discharded from Frimley Park Hospital. But the photo trail covers many overlapping subjects, such a events in the Sandhurst area. e.g. a garden open for the NGS charity, a lovely funeral service for ex-RAF and EASAMS guy Vic Piercey, family time with the Sandhurst Tennis Club and the Sandhurst Rugby Club. Some may glimpse themselves. The common theme is use of low cost, but advance tracking, such as Robin's "PocketPal" Pensioner Pendant, for all sorts of purposes. Robin is unconventional in that his position is public, on his "Contact" page - so you can guess what he is doing. e.g. working or relaxing at home, on the road, in a pub or restaurant, or - as you will see here - visiting hospitals. Sometimes technology, charity, business, and fun, overlap. There is a standard video introduction, the photo trail, then Robin wraps up with a topical subject: his reminder to the DVLA to recognise their mistake and allow him to drive again. But by far the most important events, hinted at by the locations, were the interesting and important people Robin met. Some will know who they are. Robin would particularly like to thank NHS staff and guys like Sylvia, Marian, Dr John Raffetto, and Roger Crunden. Michelle is now home with the cats.  Robin is reminded of Pascal Granger, now President of a French Private Ambulance Company, who pioneered Satnav and tracking of Ambulances MANY years ago, using Robin's GPS Software, GPSS. There is still his family photo on Robin's Study Wall. This video already has automatic subtitles, with translation into any language - including into French, for guys like Francis on the Microtransat Robot Boat Forum. Well Done Youtube Guys, whoever you are, and in whatever country ;-) Some of these overlapping topics may be found on Robin's many web pages. As it says on his visiting card: "Retired! Too busy for paid work" :-)

On Monday, July 3, 2023 at 05:55:54 PM GMT+1, Alastair Lidstone <a_lid...@hotmail.com> wrote:

Hi Phil,

Amazing to see the progress you’re making. Any idea yet on how you will recover the boat?

Alastair

On 1 Jul 2023, at 00:08, Robin Lovelock on ro...@gpss.co.uk <gp...@compuserve.com> wrote:



Hi Guys. Two pictures show Phil's Boat making good progress,

and wind good, towards the east for the next 7 days,

then blowing towards the English Coast :-)

Those looking at winds can choose Lizard, or further east.

I don't think there will be much difference over that distance.

Obviously, close approach to land will effect wind and tide.

But it should not be too difficult to guess progress.

I see Phil has kept it pointing North East rather than due East or East-North-East

which I think would give more rapid progress while we have favourable conditions.

Well done Phil's Boat ! :-)

Robin at ~ 2035 BST = 1935 GMT Monday 3 July 2023 : USA Guys - it's 4th July tomorrow :-)

http://www.gpss.co.uk with Snoopy on http://www.gpss.co.uk/autop.htm

and Phil's Boat on http://www.philsboat.info - then look at map :-)

--

[Robin Lovelock on robin@gpss.co.uk]

Sorry All. I neglected to give the latest picture PBBOAT.GIF showing in red the actual position in red, not as far as I hoped in green. For clarity I will try and repeat all the pictures.

.

[minij...@gmail.com]

Last night at 7:54 p.m.???
The weather is favorable for an easy arrival on the English coast very soon

[Peter Facey]

I'm thinking perhaps early Wednesday morning.