Forward Speeds and Turning Trajectories of a KSUPRAMAX Model Ship in Long-Crested Irregular and Equivalent Regular Waves

It is necessary to predict the ship’s manoeuvrabilities in waves for its safe operations in adverse weather. At the early design stage, free-running model tests can be performed to estimate the ship’s manoeuvring performance in irregular wave conditions. The wave elevations are randomly varied with times in irregular waves, large deviations of the manoeuvring performance indices are likely to occur depending on the start time of steering scenarios. In this study, a KSUPRAMAX model ship’s manoeuvres in long-crested irregular waves are reproduced in the equivalent regular waves. The equivalent regular waves are searched from the energy flux relations between long-crested irregular and regular waves. But there are differences of forward speeds in the model tests, regular wave height and period are modified so that both the forward speed and the trajectory drift in regular waves are similar to those in irregular waves. In addition, low speed course-keeping tests are performed with various wave incident angles in irregular and regular waves. It is confirmed that check helms, drift angles, and speeds as well as trajectories in irregular waves are similar to those in equivalent regular waves.